It was probably always going to be a difficult transition for the Chicago Bears’ Justin Fields. With a new GM, a new head coach, a new offensive scheme, and the arguably worst offensive supporting cast in the NFL, a struggle shouldn’t have been surprising for the young quarterback.
But with a start seemingly littered with red flags, it was fair to wonder whether Fields would even survive this season. After a sparkling (and stunning) individual performance in a 33-14 win against Bill Belichick’s Patriots — one of pro football’s elite defenses at the midway point of the season — we should probably put speculation about Fields’ future to rest on hold.
The guy can definitely play at this level. Scratch that; the guy can ball.
How else do you explain a game where Fields seemed like he was largely in complete command from the jump? Chicago had 390 yards of offense against what was a top-five defense in Football Outsiders’ DVOA and the league’s sixth-best scoring defense. Fields accounted for 261 of them (179 yards passing, 82 yards rushing, one passing TD, one rushing TD).
What’s more eye-opening is that Fields converted back-breaking third down after third down, seemingly by himself in a heroic effort. And, again, against a Belichick defense that knew he would try to humble them with his athleticism.
Take this patently absurd run on a third-and-long late in the first half, with the Bears driving. This has no business being a possession the Bears would continue and eventually get a field goal from. But Fields stayed composed in the pocket — a far cry from the ghosts he was seeing early in the season — and eventually knifed his way around a Patriots defense that chased and chased (and chased) the gifted QB all over the field much to no avail.
.@justnfields is a certified escape artist https://t.co/zGaRyTrSNb
— Ohio State Football (@OhioStateFB) October 25, 2022
That’s reigning three-time Pro Bowl pass rusher Matt Judon on the right side, getting jostled around by Fields’ movement. The progress is evident.
Later with the Bears trying to pad a 23-14 lead halfway through the third quarter, there was more magic from Fields on display. For context, the quarterback has seemingly made it a trademark to spin his way out of more than a few sacks and pressures every game this year. But much of the time, these plays have ended in abject disaster (a sack, a fumble, a pick-into-pressure).
Against the Patriots, under the lights, with a man coming completely free in the middle, it was clear Fields was dialed in, unlike we’ve rarely seen in his NFL career to this stage. Cole Kmet, your table is ready thanks to a dime from your talented signal-caller:
JUSTIN FIELDS BUYS TIME! COLE KMET MAKES THE TOE TAP GRAB!
— NFL Football Everything (@nflfootballeve1) October 25, 2022
I don’t know what’s more impressive about this specific play.
Is it that Fields kept his cool and kept his eyes downfield, knowing he was likely about to see another big hit? For him, that sort of development is a great stride ahead. Or is it the pass on an absolute rope on a “gotta-have-it” long third-down play? Is it both? Let’s go with both.
All told, the Bears converted 11 third downs against the Patriots on Monday night. That’s the most they’ve converted in a game, by far, in seven years. (Yes, seven years.) It’s also the second-most conversions ever against Belichick’s Patriots after Peyton Manning’s converted 12 in a 2005 game. None of this success happens if Fields doesn’t play like a maestro masterfully conducting his own personal orchestra.
Of those 11 third-down conversions, an ever-composed Fields had a direct hand in 10 of them.
Here’s how he fared as a passer on third down:
- 5-of-6, 89 yards, and an early interception
- Three conversions on third-and-six or longer
Here’s how he fared as a runner on third down:
- 5-of-5, 43 yards
- Two conversions on third-and-five or longer
How do you even begin to defend a quarterback playing confidently with this skill set? If the greatest coach in football history doesn’t have an answer for you in a home night game, not many will.
There will be a lot of discussion about what the Bears did to help make Fields successful in a challenging environment in the coming days. They rolled him out more, giving him more space to throw the ball, rather than saddling him behind the NFL’s worst offensive line in the pocket on every throwing down. They used every bit of his elite, listed 6-foot-3, 227-pound athleticism on designed runs and plays to the edges. They gave him “easy” plays and gimmes and let him establish a quality rhythm early and often.
For such a dramatic shift from what we saw of the hapless Bears a third of the way into the year, offensive coordinator Luke Getsy deserves a lot of credit. If he has any common sense, Getsy’s general plan for his quarterback prodigy won’t shift the rest of the way this fall.
But even with schematic changes, none of it would’ve mattered if Fields didn’t come to play and execute. (That also has been an issue this season.) He, very clearly, did. And while it’s just a one-off performance, for now, it’s hard not to wonder about what comes next. This didn’t feel like any ordinary regular-season game, especially for a quarterback like Fields — who was seemingly stuck and sinking in the quicksand of player development. He’ll have to be more consistent in the next few weeks and months, but this was no small step in his potential ascendance.
That’s because we might have just witnessed something not many living souls can claim. We might have seen the first coming-out party — in front of the entire football-watching county, no less — for a future legitimately great Bears quarterback. In NFL lore and the pantheon, that is not an insignificant happening. Far from it.
The Bears are the NFL’s oldest franchise and have been seeking a game-changing hero at quarterback for at least four decades, if not longer. In Justin Fields, their agonizing search for a quarterback who wears a cape might finally be over.
