If anybody tells you Justin Fields had a bad game against the Green Bay Packers on Sunday, you’ll know they didn’t watch it. They will see his two interceptions in the box score and make assumptions. In reality, the Chicago Bears quarterback had one of his best performances of the season. Until now, the core of his success in 2022 has come on the ground. That didn’t change against the Packers, as he had 71 yards rushing, capped by an electric 56-yard touchdown sprint. Yet that wasn’t the most significant development of the afternoon.
Keep this in mind. Green Bay had the 4th-ranked pass defense in the NFL going into the game. They held Fields to 70 yards passing in the first meeting three months ago at Lambeau Field. It became apparent right away they weren’t facing the same quarterback. Fields was excellent most of the afternoon, going 20-of-25 for a season-high 254 yards. Don’t forget he did this without Darnell Mooney, who is done for the year with an ankle injury, and Chase Claypool getting hobbled by a knee injury in the first half. He did most of the damage with Equanimeous St. Brown and N’Keal Harry.
Justin Fields is evolving despite less-than-ideal circumstances.
His receiving corps is a hodgepodge of journeymen and walking wounded. His offensive line has suffered from consistency issues. Yet when his protection held up, he carved the Packers apart. It is exciting to wonder what might happen when the Bears start surrounding him with more legitimate playmakers. Nitpick the interceptions and the late-game struggles all you want. Chicago has a viable quarterback for the first time in ages. He has proven multiple times he can carry this team to competitive games.
Anybody else in his situation would’ve crashed and burned by now. His blend of freakish athleticism and gritty mentality has helped him slowly morph into a complete quarterback. There is still work to do. His execution in the 4th quarter must be better. Then again, everybody on the offense can say that. He’ll get some much-needed time off during the bye week to heal. Then the final stretch will involve several future playoff teams. It should be a great chance for him to gain experience against the best the NFL has to offer.
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