Mike Martz made lots of enemies over the past few weeks. It started when he criticized the Chicago Bears for having one of the NFL’s worst supporting casts on offense. That by itself wasn’t too bad. Maybe somewhat unfair, but not anything outlandish. Everything changed when he decided to come after Justin Fields following the Bears’ big win over the San Francisco 49ers. He claimed the young quarterback couldn’t do anything as a passer.
Needless to say, that set plenty of fans off. Even media members, including his own former quarterback J.T. O’Sullivan didn’t understand the comments. While nobody would say Fields had a great game, he made some really nice plays to help his team win. Martz is notorious for being strict on quarterbacks. Still, it felt like he was personally targeting the Bears signal-caller for some reason.
Former Super Bowl winning coach Mike Martz told @The33rdTeamFB that #Bears QB Justin Fields ”Can't do anything at all.”
And on #49ers Trey Lance: “He's not a great passer. Doesn’t have good skills. takes him a long time to set himself and throw the football.” pic.twitter.com/K1iDU07bbB
— Dov Kleiman (@NFL_DovKleiman) September 13, 2022
As it turns out, there is another layer to this story.
Apparently, the editors of that video by The 33rd Team made a mistake. The comments by Martz had nothing to do with Fields. They were meant for 49ers quarterback Trey Lance. Martz went on the Waddle & Silvy Show for ESPN 1000 to clear his name. He made it clear that Fields played pretty well in the second half against San Francisco. His problem is learning to operate better from the pocket. That and the Bears getting more help around him.
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Were Mike Martz's comments on Justin Fields edited incorrectly?
"Yeah, I was talking about Trey Lance. (Trey) played so poorly, they couldn't do anything in that 1st half"
"In that game, I thought (Fields) played pretty well"
He joined @WaddleandSilvy and @TWaddle87 to discuss pic.twitter.com/E8uNVG6RrR
— ESPN 1000 (@ESPN1000) September 15, 2022
Credit Martz for going on the radio to clear the air. The interview was well done by Silvy, making sure to ask the right questions, so there was no misconception. In this new context, the former coach is correct. Fields did play well but needs to improve his operation from inside the pocket. That was true, dating back to last year. It isn’t anything new. Young quarterbacks often struggle with such things.
Mike Martz having positive things to say is worth noting.
The comments about the Bears’ new coaching staff were fascinating. He seems to hold Matt Eberflus and Luke Getsy in high regard. They run a disciplined operation and seem to have Fields pointed in the right direction. When coaching is no longer the problem, everything else becomes easier. Finishing with a passer rating over 85 in a rainstorm against a top 10 defense has to be called progress.
His next test will be Sunday night in Green Bay against another good defense. It’ll also be raining there too. It seems Fields won’t get favorable conditions for another week or two. Mike Martz never had to worry about that, having spent most of his coaching career inside domes. He’ll be watching the primetime broadcast like everybody else.
It will be a signature moment for Fields.
The last time he was on national TV, he ripped up the Pittsburgh Steelers. If he can put together a complete performance in Green Bay, people won’t be able to ignore him anymore. Maybe then he can stop worrying about former coaches and players criticizing every little thing he does. Not that it mattered to him anyway. One of Fields’ biggest gifts is tuning out the noise.
one of the very first things Martz did was trade away greg olsen so who is he to critisize anyone.Who keeps bringing this old bag of bones up anyways.Is he trying to become relevant again or something.He was USELESS for the bears so quit giving him attention!
Fields did not play well. He made a few plays and nothing most of the game. The 49ers sustained drives for the Bears via penalty.
I don’t see “it”. I see journeyman back up who will have his moments and have MOMENTS. Thought we wanted to move away from Trubisky… looks like we re-drafted him.
I’m not worried. He’s not the QB of the future.
Martz was a failure as an offensive coordinator when he was with the Bears under the Lovie Smith era. So don’t think his words carry any weight or substance.
Martz is talking out of both sides of his mouth as he has done for the past 10 years since acquiring an increase in dementia.
This is a real s*+^ show. Who in the heck is giving Martz a weekly show? Hard pass my guy! #Beatgreenbay