Matt Nagy can’t keep himself out of the news no matter how hard he tries. To be fair, his handling of this entire quarterback situation from the beginning was going to get him in trouble. That was because he committed to Andy Dalton from the outset. He never left the door open for Justin Fields to challenge for the job. That irritated a lot of fans and media members. People who thought he was sticking way too close to the Kansas City model. One that was nowhere near the same situation in Chicago. One person who can’t understand it is Steve Young.
The Hall of Fame quarterback knows about QB controversies. He lived one with Joe Montana in San Francisco. He also knows about starting as a rookie. He did it both in the USFL for the L.A. Express and the NFL for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Both experiences were painful and often hard to watch. Does that mean he thinks the Bears should sit Fields? Not at all. He said as much on Monday Night Countdown. Nagy would be making a big mistake sitting the rookie.
Especially now that he’s starting to build momentum.
The argument from Nagy’s point of view is desiring to protect Fields. Not let him take too many hits until he can better handle the exotic looks he’ll see from NFL defenses. Others think the coach believes the team has a better chance to win ballgames with Dalton. Winning is how he saves his job. Steve Young clearly doesn’t buy any of that. From his point of view, going back to the veteran would do more harm than good.
Fields did something for the Bears offense on Sunday it hasn’t seen in years. Opened up the big play. The rookie had four passes of 20 yards or more. That is a dimension Dalton can’t offer. There is no doubt Fields gave the team some juice. Taking that away seems reckless and could backfire spectacularly. Play the kid. If he gets better? Then you’re fully justified. If he struggles? Then go back to Dalton. Simply sticking with the veteran because “it’s the plan” is stubborn and shortsighted.
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