The Chicago Bears lost a close game, 35-32, to the Miami Dolphins in Week 9. Justin Fields played lights out, breaking the NFL record for most rushing yards by a quarterback in a single game with 178.
The Bears are trending in the right direction offensively. The issue has turned to their defense. Matt Eberflus and Alan Williams are dealing with the fallout of the losses Roquan Smith and Robert Quinn. They have to patch those holes up in order for Chicago to win football games.
Let’s take a look at where the Bears stand in the power rankings going into Week 10 against the Lions.
NFL.com
Current Ranking: 21st
Last Week’s Ranking: 24th
Author: Dan Hanzus
Author’s Take:
In a season that’s been defined in part by poor quarterback play in places you’d least suspect it, it’s refreshing to watch a young player like Justin Fields make the leap in such profound fashion. The second-year man out of Ohio State was historically dangerous on Sunday, setting a Super Bowl-era record for QBs with 178 rushing yards in a 35-32 lossto the Dolphins. Fields accounted for four touchdowns, and he might have been the talk of the league this week had game officials not missed an obvious pass interference call on a deep attempt to Chase Claypool with 1:35 to play. Chicago’s defense remains lost at sea without Robert Quinn and Roquan Smith, but Fields promises to keep this team compelling with a huge arrow up for 2023 and beyond.
Our Take:
Justin Fields has turned things around over the last few weeks. He has gone from a struggling young quarterback to a second-year signal caller with confidence. It’s shown with his ability to run the ball and now how well he’s thrown the ball. Adding Chase Claypool only will fuel his fire going forward.
Bleacher Report
Current Ranking: 23rd
Last Week’s Ranking: 26th
Author: NFL Staff
Author’s Take:
There are no moral victories in the NFL, and allowing 35 points to the Miami Dolphins in a loss is hardly ideal.
But the Chicago Bears had no bigger goal in 2022 than developing second-year quarterback Justin Fields. And after throwing three touchdown passes and gouging the Dolphins for a regular-season record 178 rushing yards, Fields has strung together strong outings and looks to be a markedly improved player.
Bears safety Eddie Jackson lauded Fields’ performance after the game while allowing that he and the Bears defense has to play better.
“You just see what type of player he is,” Jackson said. “You just continue to see him grow week-in, week-out. And the offense as a whole, continuing to come out here and get us 30 points. That’s something that we’ve been asking for and we can’t continue to let teams come out and score 28 or 35 points on us as a defense.”
Moton was equally impressed by what Fields has accomplished of late.
“Even though the Bears have lost three of their last four games, Fields has blossomed in offensive coordinator Luke Getsy’s system over the past month,” he said. “The Bears have featured more of his running ability, which boosted their scoring since Week 7 to 31.3 points per game.
“The defense, however, has trended in the wrong direction, giving up 10 touchdowns over the past two games, but that’s to be expected after the team traded edge-rusher Robert Quinn and linebacker Roquan Smith. Nonetheless, new general manager Ryan Poles should feel good about building around Fields. He can add veteran talent on defense with more than $100 million of cap space in 2023.”
Our Take:
Bears players are taking notice, they’re impressed with what they see with their young signal caller. If they can follow suit and help him more, Chicago can kickstart this rebuild and win football games faster than many think. They have talent on their roster already, with $100-plus million of cap space to spend this offseason – plus the NFL draft. The Bears have no excuse to miss the playoffs in 2023, barring any major injuries.
USA Today
Current Ranking: 24th
Last Week’s Ranking: 27th
Author: Nate Davis
Author’s Take:
Justin Fields is on course to become the third different quarterback in league history to rush for 1,000 yards and has a shot at Lamar Jackson’s record (1,206) for the position. However Fields has also been sacked a league-worst 33 times, so the punishment could start to add up quickly.
Our Take:
Fields continues to stack impressive performances, and he’s on pace to eclipse 1,000 rushing yards on the season. This offense is trending in the right direction.
ESPN
Current Ranking: 25th
Last Week’s Ranking: 26th
Author: Courtney Cronin
Author’s Take:
The Bears kicker has made 19 consecutive field goals, a stretch that dates back to Week 15 of the 2021 season. Santos is a perfect 13-of-13 on field goals this season, including four from 50-plus yards, and 14-of-16 on extra points. His presence has provided a boost to Chicago’s growing offense and the comfort that it can keep pace even if drives end with field goals over touchdowns. “Every time we get in that field goal range, I’m always cognitive of, we got points,” quarterback Justin Fields said of Santos. “We most likely have points right here.”
Our Take:
Cairo Santos is on another run, similar to the one he was on between the 2020 and 2021 NFL season. He’s been the most consistent player on the Bears for some time now, and he isn’t letting up. With Santos out there, he’s almost proven to be automatic.
Yahoo! Sports
Current Ranking: 25th
Last Week’s Ranking: 26th
Author: Frank Schwab
Author’s Take:
The Bears have to be pleased with the progress that Justin Fields is making. It took too long but they’ve also figured out how to feature him. If they can keep seeing that improvement over the last eight games it will be a successful season for the Bears regardless of their final record.
Our Take:
The Bears are pleased with Justin Fields, and so are the fans. It’s weird, their losses don’t feel like losses right now. Since they’re improving on offense, it feels like a step forward, even if they’re taking a step backwards in the standings.
CBS Sports
Current Ranking: 30th
Last Week’s Ranking: 30th
Author: Pete Prisco
Author’s Take:
Justin Fields has really come on in recent weeks. He can really run it, but he’s throwing it better as well.
Our Take:
The Bears have proven to be better than the 30th best team in the NFL. With how well Justin Fields has played the last few weeks, they should be higher.
