A Bears offense that was on the ropes just two games ago is somehow one of the most dangerous in football.
Through five games, the Bears have 25 explosive plays — 20 passes and five runs of more than 20 yards. Only two teams can claim more, and they’re among the most dynamic in the sport: the Dolphins and Lions.
“As an offense you need explosive plays,” quarterback Justin Fields said Wednesday. “So it get us in a rhythm. Of course it gets the momentum going. It’s always positive to have those big chunks.”
They’re coming in bunches — the Bears are averaging eight per game the last two weeks against the Broncos and Commanders, two of the league’s worst defenses.
In the first three weeks, they averaged three.
“(The offense) took a giant step,” said wide receiver DJ Moore, who caught eight passes for 230 yards against the Commanders. “Last week … all the stars aligned. Looking at this week, we want the sun to align with us.”
If it does, it will be because of Fields, who has taken major strides in going deep.
Among qualifying passers, Fields ranked 17th among starting quarterbacks in passer rating and 23rd in completion percentage on throws of 20 yards or further last year, per Pro Football Focus. This year, he’s tied for fourth with a 135.4 passer rating and tied for sixth with a completion percentage of 50.
“It starts with the O-line up front protecting, giving me time to be able to be back there and throw the ball,” Fields said. “Two is the receivers making plays down the field, making contested catches, running good routes and stuff like that. I think it’s just a combination of that — blocking and receivers running their routes and me throwing the ball.”
And coordinator Luke Getsy calling the plays.
“The shots down the field, then guys executing the calls,” coach Matt Eberflus said. “We’ve just gotta continue to do that. Some are short runs and catches and some are shots down the field … Those are designs, and those have been executed well.”
The Bears were shocked that the Commanders kept playing a single high safety against them Thursday night, daring them to keep throwing to Moore. The Vikings won’t do that, but they will bring pressure from all angles. If the Bears can block the blitz, the deep shots should be open.
In trusting his receivers, particularly Moore, Fields has become unafraid to throw deep. After Week 1, he was dead last in aggressiveness score, which is defined by NFL Next Gen Stats as the percentage of throws made with a defender within a yard of the pass-catchers. In Week 2, he was seventh-to-last. The last three weeks, though, he’s been sixth-best, 10th-best and seventh-best.
The next step is for Fields to keep his hand hot. Fields’ 127.7 passer rating in the first quarter is the fourth-best in the NFL. His 112.8 in the second ranks sixth and his 96.6 in the third quarter ranks 13th.
In the fourth quarter, though, things turn ugly. His 61.2 passer rating ranks 32nd out of 39 qualifiers.
“I feel like I’m just playing ball …” Fields said. “The main thing is just being locked in from the first through the fourth quarter. Me personally, I think I can do better in the second half with staying locked in and keeping all the guys locked in and putting up the same amount of points we do in the first half. I think that’s the next step as an offense — keeping our foot on the gas.”
