Thursday, December 12, 2024

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Bears Mailbag: Does Justin Fields Have Enough Weapons?

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It’s the middle of the off-season. Takes are flying in from everywhere. Everyone is just ready for football to be here. So I decided it was time to bring back the mailbag. Let’s hop right in.

Does Fields Have Enough Weapons To Evaluate His Progression From Year 1 to 2?

This is a great question. All we hear about next season is how Justin Fields has very little help. That he has no supporting cast. I tend to disagree with this take as I feel as though we aren’t giving enough credit to Darnell Mooney, Cole Kmet, and Byron Pringle. Not to mention Velus Jones Jr. who I expect to be a weapon in this offense right away. These aren’t big names. Hell, one is even a rookie. But not signing “big” names doesn’t mean there won’t be production. Reread that again for me.

Mooney has only gotten better. Year 3 shouldn’t be any different. Tight Ends tend to make a big jump in year 3 and Kmet showed a lot of promise at the tail end of last season. Factor in the new coaching staff and I believe the offensive side of the ball will look a lot better. All of that being said, we will know exactly what we have in Fields by the end of the year. The numbers might not show this year but if he’s the guy.. 2023 will be fun.

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If You Had To Pick Only One Game To Go To This Year Home Or Away, Which One And Why?

Give me week one, at home vs San Francisco. Nothing is quite better than opening weekend in the NFL. Throw in a potential revenge game for Fields and Co. and it’s an easy pick for me. I wanna see another crazy TD run (you know which one I am referring too) from JF but this time both in-person and at Soldier Field no less. We should be getting Trey Lance vs Justin Fields for the first time as well which is a very cool story line within self.

Then we have the new regime, that revamped secondary, a healthy Teven Jenkins, etc. so there is a lot to look forward to in this one. However, there could also be a lot of issues/kinks to work out since it would be game number one.

So this could be a risky pick to be honest.

Do you think Teven Jenkins will be a powerhouse this year?

Absolutely. He’s been working all off-season and from the reports, his back surgery seemed to have solved any potential lingering issues moving forward. If he can stay healthy, Justin is in good hands.

Other Than Eddie Jackson and Justin Fields, Who Has The Most To Prove On This Current Roster?

I’d have to go with Darnell Mooney. The Bears haven’t made a lot of splashes at the WR position. They are likely waiting until next off-season where they will have a ton of money to spend. But there might be another reason and that involves Mooney. He had a great sophomore campaign where we saw him snag 81 receptions for 1,055 yards. Does the new regime believe he’s a number one? I think they do. We could be looking at a Russell Wilson/Tyler Lockett combo. Obviously these two have a long way to go until they reach that tier but I can see it happening if everything pans out. To throw another name who has a lot to prove, it would be tight end Cole Kmet. Heading into year number 3, he’s gotta show that he can be a great fit for this new system as well as a safety valve for Fields.

To answer that last question, I think Velus Jones Jr. is gonna surprise a lot of people.

If You Were To Pick One Game From Last Year That Showed Potential For The Future, Which One Would It Be?

Someone commented underneath this question (shoutout to @gampeen on Twitter) and said the Steelers game. He read my mind. If it weren’t for that dumb taunting call on Bears legend Cassius Marsh, Fields would have completed his first ever game winning drive and fourth quarter comeback. Although the Bears were still very undisciplined in that game, which should change with Flus and company, I think we saw a glimpse of what Fields can and in my opinion will be.

He’s a gamer. He never lost hope and when it mattered most he delivered. I believe that’s who he is and hopefully we see that more and more over the next 5-10 years.

As always, I appreciate all the questions that ya’ll sent. I will try and do one of these every week! So keep them coming and I will do my best to answer as many as I can!

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