Ryan Clark played in the NFL for several years, winning a Super Bowl with the Pittsburgh Steelers. He’s played with and against some of the best quarterbacks in NFL history. So his eye for the position should be pretty solid. That is why it was interesting to hear his comments on Justin Fields before and after the 2021 draft. While he understood Trevor Lawrence being the #1 overall pick, his personal belief was that, in time, Fields could end up being the best QB to come from that draft.
The past few weeks have begun to confirm some of those beliefs. Fields has a 97.2 passer rating in his past four games, throwing five touchdowns with two interceptions and rushing for two more. He’s become the best player on the Bears’ offense by a wide margin. By contrast, Lawrence has a 70.7 passer rating with two touchdowns and four interceptions despite having what many felt was a better supporting cast. Clark again expressed on ESPN Get Up how baffling it was the Jets and 49ers passed on Fields last year.
Chicago got themselves a steal. People finally see the truth.
Justin Fields is getting reinforcements now too.
Cody Whitehair has returned from IR after a month of dealing with a knee injury. That should bolster the offensive line. More importantly, Chase Claypool arrives from Pittsburgh via trade. He instantly gives the wide receiver room a jolt with his considerable talent. Every quarterback loves a 6’4 target with speed. The next nine games could signal Fields’ true ascent up the NFL ladder if he stays healthy. That feels crazy to say since he plays for an organization that has been haunted by terrible quarterbacks for decades.
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He isn’t there yet. There is no room for complacency. Not that such a thing is in Justin Fields’ DNA, regardless. He is already earning a reputation as one of the hardest workers in the business. The guy eats, sleeps, drinks, and breathes football. That is undoubtedly a big reason why he’s finding success in difficult circumstances. One can only imagine how good he’ll be if the Bears can put good players around him moving forward.
Jim B: The only reason Pace drafted Fields was to generate excitement in the hopes that he (Pace and by extension Nagy) wouldn’t lose their jobs. It was a desperate and last ditch move. Don’t get me wrong I am glad that the Bears have Justin QB1 as sometimes things work out for the best. It could prove being the best draft choice that Pace ever made albeit ulterior motives behind it (self preservation). How many here think that a Pace and Nagy lead team were up to the task of developing Justin Fields into a starting NFL QB? They… Read more »
Fields is not an NFL ready QB. Doesn’t read defenses fast enough Can’t anticipate routes Sloppy mechanics Holds onto the ball too long Takes too many hits Required a complete tear down of the playbook for a RPO offense. Sorry. This isn’t how NFL teams win. It’s how 1 player can have nice fantasy stats. Like today. Fields had 122 passing yards but 178 rushing yards. Good for him. How did everyone else do? Terrible. Fields is FAILING in his primary job of being a mobile ball distribution platform. Nice fantasy stat day for Fields in another ugly loss for… Read more »
Yeah, thanks Ryan Pace for Justin Fields; and the sixteen other Bears players that remain on the 2022 roster.
Also, thanks from the GMs of the other NFL team’s that currently employ thirty former Bears players — each a player that Ryan Poles either traded or released.
That’s 47 NFL players from just one 53-man roster (2021) — all of whom were acquired by Ryan Pace..
I hope that Ryan Poles can be as successful at judging NFL talent. But, Dakota Dozier, Julien Davenport, Lucas Patrick, Alex Leatherwood, and others give me pause for thought.
LAMEBERT does it again, what a tool
About the only thing Pace got right was drafting Fields.