Justin Fields probably shouldn’t have played on Sunday night. The guy had three cracked ribs. It was a largely meaningless game in the grand scheme of this season. Maybe it would’ve been better to give him one more week to recover. As ever, the needs of the team took priority. With Andy Dalton nursing a broken hand, the rookie got the green light to return. All things considered? He played pretty well.
While he did have three turnovers, it was still an encouraging performance from Fields. He amassed 298 total yards and threw two touchdowns. This despite having to stand behind an offensive line that featured not one but two rookies playing tackle. Teven Jenkins had four penalties and got beat badly on what became a strip-sack of the quarterback. Fields was pressured on over 53% of his drops.
Amidst all of this, it was easy to forget the guy was in pain.
Anybody that has dealt with ribs injuries knows just how uncomfortable they can be. It often hurts to even move around. Imagine having to torque your body throwing a football 25-30 times a game with big, strong defenders coming at you at 100 mph. The Bears rookie did this willingly. He admitted afterwards that he wasn’t feeling the greatest during the game. Every throw hurt and it may have impacted his aggressiveness at times. Constantly trying to protect the ribs.
True to form, Fields didn’t make excuses. While he felt he played okay, he made it clear it wasn’t good enough. He has to keep working to get better. The words of a guy who is a true leader. One must give him credit. It would be so easy to get discouraged at this point. The team has lost seven of their last eight games. He’s taking a beating and now it is all but certain his coaching staff will be fired.
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Justin Fields though isn’t letting it impact his approach
His job remains the same. To keep improving. To learn how to play in the NFL at a high level. If he does that, then he is confident things will eventually work out. It is hard to argue with his logic. Despite the turnover issues, Fields has continued to show encouraging flashes as a quarterback. He looks far more comfortable and confident now than he did two months ago. His internal clock is speeding up and he isn’t intimidated by blitzes like he was early on.
This was always going to be a process. The key for the Bears and Justin Fields himself was simple. Work through the learning moments and try to keep the kid healthy. The latter has proven more and more challenging as the season goes on. Both are due to the inadequate offensive system he plays in, the porous protection, and the array of weapons that can be called average at best.
The kid needs help.
He’ll have to wait four more games before the organization can start doing something about it. Expectations are head coach Matt Nagy will be fired at some point in the next few weeks. It is possible GM Ryan Pace could follow him out the door as well. The new regime will then be tasked with finding the young quarterback better receivers, tight ends, and blocking. One hopes Fields can survive long enough to see the process through.
