Offensive coordinator Luke Getsy is an even-keel guy. It is apparent he is never too high or too low when it comes to his emotions. That is a good thing when it comes to his job. Having a coach dictated by his personal feelings can often lead to rash decisions or judgments. That might explain why Getsy isn’t on the same wavelength as many Chicago Bears fans and media regarding the Justin Fields situation.
There is no denying the young quarterback has struggled. He’s completing less than 60% of his passes for seven touchdowns and ten interceptions. He has cracked 200 yards in a game only once in six tries, has seven fumbles, and is the most sacked QB in the league at 23. Seeing such numbers makes it difficult to believe there is anything positive to say about Fields. To his credit, Getsy managed precisely that. He made it clear during his latest presser that the quarterback is making strides in how he plays the position. Yes, the production isn’t there yet.
However, with some continued patience, it feels like a breakthrough isn’t as far away as many people think.
Luke Getsy isn’t exactly wrong.
The numbers do back up his statement to a degree. Through his first three games, Fields had a dismal passer rating of 50.0. In the three games since, he’s bumped that up to 87.3. While his stats haven’t been remotely close to what is considered normal for an average NFL quarterback, they are going in the right direction, at least. He has also managed to compensate for some of the issues with his legs. Fields is currently on pace for 800 yards rushing. So there are silver linings.
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The issue for Luke Getsy is whether he can keep that positive momentum on track. The offense lacks overall talent, and the upcoming schedule gets pretty brutal, with several strong defensive opponents looming. Such issues can break young quarterbacks. It will be interesting to see how Fields handles it. His toughness is unquestioned. Most can’t take the mental strain, though. The Bears continue to believe Fields is the one who can.
He just needs to release the ball sooner, there are open windows and he hasn’t learned to trust them. He isn’t a 1 read and rush QB, he is going through progressions but doesn’t trust that receivers are open, so he holds the ball and then runs. If he can steadily improve on this this year, I’ll be encouraged, if not, Poles can decide his fate in the off-season. I’m rooting for him!
So Fields is regressing as a passer and is reverting back to his 1 read and run QB for dummies tactic.
Odds definitely stacked against JF1. Hopefully he keeps improving.
For one….. the glaring stat that was posted in this article. Passer rating was a 50 after his first 3 games. His last 3 games it's been an 87. So there is not only the OC stating that he's definitely seen improvements but the stats saying it as well. That's improvement with still having the OL that's last in the NFL in time giving it's QB a clean pocket to throw from as well as a receivers group who is both last in the NFL in separation percentage and last in the NFL in drop rate. Sorry but those aren't… Read more »
Getzy and this staff are delusional. What improvements can they see that the rest of the sports world does not?