The Chicago Bears offense had some mixed results in the preseason. They looked great in the opener against Tennessee but suffered some inconsistency in the finale against Buffalo. Justin Fields looked a little too much like the player he was last season. He’s still a dangerous rushing threat but unable to find a rhythm as a passer. Part of that might’ve been because offensive coordinator Luke Getsy kept the playbook trimmed down. He didn’t want to do much scheming since it would give the Green Bay Packers more tape to study.
Whatever the case, it’s difficult to know where things stand. Getsy has maintained the utmost confidence in Fields’ progress. The quarterback spoke to Dan Wiederer of the Chicago Tribune about their relationship. It turns out Getsy’s trust in Fields goes far deeper than expected. Most offensive coordinators or offensive head coaches prefer to retain complete control of the offensive machinations. That includes play-calling. Not Getsy. He’s taking a different approach in an effort to push Fields higher.
“It’s just me understanding the offense more and him giving me the reins. I think Mooney said something the other day about me being able to control our two-minute drills in practice. Luke will just have that be on me. So he’ll just call the first play and then we’re on the ball and he’ll just leave it up to me on what plays I want to call.
Then even before a drive, like in the last game, he was just asking me what pass plays I like. Boom, what I want to run. I told him ‘This play. This play. This play.’ And he ran all of them. So it’s just that trust between us. The biggest thing is just that trust between each other and him knowing I’m going to take care of the ball, make a good decision and not hurt the team.”
Luke Getsy wants Fields to take ownership of the offense.
That has been his goal from the beginning. In his mind, the best way to get the most out of the quarterbacks is to have them be a coordinator on the field. History shows that it leads to positive results when quarterbacks are forced to call their own plays. Terry Bradshaw, Boomer Esiason, Ken Stabler, and Jim Kelly are classic examples of this approach. However, as offenses have become more sophisticated, it’s been an approach that died away over the years. Full control doesn’t exist anymore, but there are still ways for coaches to give their quarterbacks more freedom.
This is done by discussing which plays they like to run and giving them full autonomy during hurry-up situations. It has the double benefit of forging a bond of trust between coach and QB while forcing the QB to think on his feet. That seems to have worked out well for Luke Getsy. Fields has bought into the offense completely. Reports out of Halas Hall are that he has assumed far more ownership of the operation than last year. It’s led to more confidence in the huddle and at the line of scrimmage.
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We haven’t seen the results yet, but both seem confident they will come.
