Up until the Chicago Bears’ fourth game of the season, conversations about the quarterback position had shifted to the 2024 draft. Everybody started thinking about Caleb Williams should they end up with the #1 overall pick. Justin Fields was a lost cause. His disappointing missed opportunities against Tampa Bay and complete ineffectiveness in Kansas City left many believing he was beyond help. Then the Denver game happened. Fields threw for 335 yards and four touchdowns, the best performance of his career.
It was encouraging, but people believed that was primarily due to playing a terrible Broncos defense. Four days later, Fields posted 285 yards and four more touchdowns. It was arguably the best two-game stretch a Bears quarterback has ever had. It also led the Bears to their first win of the season, breaking a miserable 14-game drought. Still, many aren’t sure what to make of this recent outburst. Is it a mirage brought on by playing bad teams, or has Fields truly figured something out?
Jeremy Fowler of ESPN revealed what he’s been hearing inside Halas Hall.
“The Bears believe quarterback Justin Fields has seen the field maybe better than he ever has over the past two games. And they believe when Fields’ footwork is clean, that guides his eyes, and good things happen in the pocket. Fields also said after Thursday night’s win over Washington that he reminds offensive coordinator Luke Getsy to get DJ Moore the ball as much as possible. After 15 targets for Moore through Weeks 1-3, he has 19 over the past two weeks — with Fields’ play exploding during that span, throwing for 617 yards and eight touchdown passes.”
Jeff Hughes of Da Bears Blog was asked about this report. His comment was also eye-opening.
Justin Fields’ success hasn’t been only thanks to bad defense.
While Denver and Washington aren’t good on that side of the ball, quarterbacks don’t throw four touchdowns in a game solely because of that. There will be times when they have to make tight-window passes. That is what stood out the most from Fields the past two weeks. He was willing to test those windows, which he refused to do the previous three weeks and most of last season. As the quote above also stated, his footwork in the pocket looks far less sluggish and clunky. He’s letting the flow of the play guide him to the right reads.
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It’s also helping his accuracy and ball placement. Both were significant factors in his game against Washington. Three of his four touchdowns required steadiness in the pocket and precise location to pull off. Those weren’t throws Justin Fields was making last month. It’s hard to imagine the switch can flip so abruptly, but the evidence speaks for itself. The Bears seem to think his progress is real. If so, the questions at quarterback should fade into the background, allowing GM Ryan Poles to focus on fortifying the rest of the roster next off-season.
Here’s hoping…