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.
This is your year to shine, JF1. Beat GB. Do us all proud!
Not to sound negative, but it’s ALL talk at this point.
Reality is that the O-Line is a hodge podge due to Injury / not having enough reps together — especially with “mystery man” Davis at RG.
Here’s hoping for the best against GB!
One of the biggest problems I noticed when Trubiskey was playing is that Nagy was constantly in his ear. Every damn drive, every damn game, he was nagging Trubisky so much that the guy never got a chance to just f’ing play the damn game. Good coaches know that at some point you gotta let the player be who they are and cook (yeah, I stole that word). Is it a risk? Sure. But the alternative is to have a QB that’s thinking too much and not being allowed to be the guy they drafted. Now is the time to… Read more »
Ryan Poles wants Justin Fields to make the “franchise QB” (or not) determination as easy as possible.
Fields has to be “all in” on that opportunity — and all of us should be all in, too!
The name of the game for an NFL QB is all about: Red Zone scoring (TDs not FGs); moving the chains (third-down efficiency; and the ability to succeed in the final 2-minutes of the half and of the game (not only to score — but also, to use the entire time remaining).
Justin Fields: the ball is in your court.
Good luck!
This just tells me it’s a make or break year for Fields. They’re gonna let him sink or swim on his own terms. We won’t be in a better position than we are to draft a quarterback in the next draft so it makes sense. I hope Fields pulls it off