Following a rocky start to the 2023 NFL season for quarterback Justin Fields, it appears the jury remains out on his longterm future with the Bears. A recent report that points to some debate internally over whether Fields can be the team’s franchise quarterback has grabbed plenty of attention.
And one bit may point to the team already preparing for the “what if” scenario of moving on, according to Jay Glazer of Fox Sports.
“The big thing here is Justin Fields. Right now, the jury is still out whether he’s their quarterback of the future ... Justin Fields still has a ways to go to convince the Chicago Bears that he is their quarterback of the future, and that’s the reason they went out and got another No. 1 pick for this year’s draft,” Glazer stated.
The Bears remain undecided on committing to Justin Fields as their long-term QB, per @JayGlazer.
— FOX Sports: NFL (@NFLonFOX) September 24, 2023
Here's the latest: pic.twitter.com/zqw62bW2Zd
This report certainly can’t come as a total shock, but the timing of it, heading into just Week 3 of the season, is a bit surprising. But through two games this year, Fields has completed just 60.6 percent of his passes for 427 passing yards, two touchdowns and three interceptions. He’s also rushed 13 times for 62 yards and one additional score.
The way Chicago has opted to deploy Fields this season caught man fans off-guard, especially after the success he had down the stretch of last season with a higher number of rushing attempts. Not only did Fields top 60 rushing yards in nine of the team’s final 10 games, but he scored seven touchdowns on the ground, but also threw 14 touchdowns against seven interceptions over that stretch.
It’s apparent Fields gets more comfortable in a game flow that allows him to utilize his ability to take off and run, but the Bears haven’t maximized that upside through two games this season.
