Justin Fields earned the patience of Chicago Bears management. His 2022 season was far from perfect, but he played well enough to warrant another season. GM Ryan Poles used the off-season to bring in as much help as possible. D.J. Moore fortified the wide receiver room. Darnell Wright and Nate Davis came in to help steady the offensive line. Robert Tonyan adds another weapon at tight end. Together with his second season in the same offense, it’s hardly unrealistic to think Fields should improve as a passer this year.
The third-year quarterback made two appearances in the preseason. Statistically, he played well, going 5-of-9 for 180 yards and two touchdowns. However, the numbers appear misleading. Most of them came from short throws on screens. It was a mixed bag when asked to take deep drops and make throws from the pocket. Brad Biggs of the Chicago Tribune spoke to a scout from another NFC team about it. The reaction was that Fields still hadn’t corrected his biggest issue from last year.
”I know there is a lot of hype around Fields because of the plays he made with his legs last year,” an NFC scout said last week. “That and the talent upgrades have created a lot of hype. To me, his eyes are the biggest issue. Still a big question mark if he can see the field and work through progressions. He wants to run first, drops his eyes to the rush and look for running lanes too often. Hard to succeed when that’s the case.”
Justin Fields still hasn’t quite made that Jalen Hurts shift.
The Philadelphia Eagles star was primarily a runner in his first two years. That finally changed in 2022 when he blossomed as a pocket passer. It was hoped Fields could do the same this season. Now, fairness is required here. The guy only threw nine passes, and it’s the preseason. No scheming was involved, and he played without large chunks of his starting offensive teammates. Still, what was said isn’t untrue. Fields still seemed to take a half-second longer than normal to make his throws against Buffalo. He did tuck and run at the first opportunity rather than keep his eyes downfield for a big play.
It is way too soon to make any definitive statements about Justin Fields. More playing time is required. He must get comfortable with his new weapons and hopefully learn to trust his protection. People forget Hurts didn’t start hitting his stride as a passer last season until mid-October. It is reasonable to assume that we should know where Fields is by the start of November. If he still looks like what the scout described, the Bears may know this is who he is.
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Then, it becomes a decision whether they can live with that.
The only reason anyone says anything about Fields is because he isn’t winning games. If he was 20-5 as a starter instead of 5-20, all of the “experts” would say: “Look how brilliant he was tucking the ball and just running for the first down instead of looking down field.” LOL
My concern is why didn’t Flus and company let JF play MORE in pre-season? They took him out after 1!!! ??? hit… he was working the team into the ‘deep redzone’…. I think it would have done wonders for HIM and the team to allow him to complete that drive. I think they s/have given B-agent the full 2nd half vs COLTS too…. sometimes I just don’t understand their thinking. I have WAY WAY more information that I do so… .I have to have FAITH. Also, I know we are being ‘belicheck’-ish… by not revealing ANYTHING in pre-season… so… maybe… Read more »
JF will forever carry a shallow and ignorant stigma that he is looking to run. Anytime you see him take off and run, no matter how good the run is or how smart it was to run, people are going to interpret that as him just wanting to use his legs every play. I encourage anyone who’s ripping into Fields and saying he can’t make reads to watch the all-22 tape from the offensive POV. You will see him making reads regularly, something you won’t see on the Broadcast because of the camera angle. His throw to Herbet was a… Read more »
@unluckyirishman76…. RIGHT!!! Wasn’t Tre Lance a D2 guy? The 49ers traded up to take him AND the Cowboys traded for him. I thinks it’s hilarious actually. All these GMs wet themselves over these raw athlete types who can run around and throw the ball far. Then as soon as it’s time to talk new contracts and the players are hurt all the time or their output never matches their potential… the GMs are nowhere to be found. Like really?? You didn’t know running QBs are injury prone? You didn’t know a run first QB has never HAD to do a… Read more »
Wrong You don’t need weapons and a line to properly make reads. If you make the right throw and the receiver drops it you made the right throw. If the receiver runs the wrong route and it leads to a pick or incompletion… that’s in the wide receiver. Coaches know this stuff. If you miss reads because you process slow that’s on you. Not the receiver or the line. Talent at skill positions affects the outcome. Good blocking affects the outcome. The intangibles you literally can not teach… that’s the formula that gets the outcome. You can’t cover up the… Read more »