Since the Chicago Bears selected Ohio State quarterback Justin Fields with the 11th overall pick of the 2021 draft, we’ve all been waiting for the young quarterback to turn the proverbial corner. That was never going to happen in Fields’ rookie year, because head coach and alleged offensive mastermind Matt Nagy was in charge of things, which left an Adam Gase-ish cast on the whole season.
New blood came in the 2022 season with head coach Matt Eberflus and offensive coordinator Luke Getsy, and early on, things weren’t much different. In Weeks 106, Fields completed 63 of 115 passes (54.8%) for 869 yards (7.6 YPA), four touchdowns, five interceptions, and a quarterback rating of 72.7.
The last game in that sequence was Chicago’s 17-7 loss to the Washington Commanders on Thursday, October 13. That gave Fields and Chicago’s offensive staff a nice mini-bye to figure things out, and it appears that they all did just that.
In Fields’ next two games, a win over the Patriots and a loss to the Cowboys, Fields completed 30 of 44 passes (68.2%) for 330 yards (7.5 YPA), three touchdowns, one interception, and a passer rating of 103.4.
Fields brought the hot hand into Sunday’s game against the Miami Dolphins, making several big plays with his arm and his legs. There was this 18-yard second quarter touchdown pass to tight end Cole Kmet, in which Fields used play- and boot-action in the same play to befuddle Miami’s defense.
A tremendous play-fake helps create this Cole Kmet touchdown #DaBears #FPC #NFL #NFLTwitter
— Full Press NFL (@FullPressNFL) November 6, 2022
Then, there was this 16-yard touchdown pass to Darnell Mooney later in the second quarter, and this is about as well as you can throw a ball with defenders converging.
QB1 JUSTIN FIELDS TO DARNELL MOONEY WE HAVE A QUARTERBACK pic.twitter.com/XXbbzFz4ci
— DOM (@DOM_Frederic) November 6, 2022
Did we mention that Fields is making things happen with his legs? You don’t need to tell the Dolphins after this 61-yard third quarter touchdown run. Here, Fields had Miami’s defense on a string with the threat of a pass, saw that the run presented a better opportunity, and went for it. This wasn’t a yong quarterback bailing on his reads; this was a young quarterback understanding how to use all the attributes at his disposal. Miami dropped seven into coverage on third-and-6, and you don’t do that against a quarterback you don’t respect as a passer.
JUSTIN FIELDS pic.twitter.com/9HaGqpEHKA
— Ari Meirov (@MySportsUpdate) November 6, 2022
That said, Fields has also improved as a runner since that mini-bye — he had 21 carries for 281 yards and a touchdown in the first six games of the season, and 17 carries for 142 yards and two touchdowns in the next two.
That Fields has been able to improve against two top defense in the Cowboys and Patriots, and eat heartily against a Dolphins defense that has been a relative disappointment, seems to indicate that the light has gone on.
Sometimes, all it takes is an extra few days of rest.
