Whether fans like it or not, the Chicago Bears are slowly inching towards a move to Arlington Heights to play in a climate-controlled stadium instead of the outdoor elements at Soldier Field. While some former players have pushed back on the notion of playing indoors, count Bears quarterback Justin Fields as a big fan of the idea.
Fields, speaking on Barstool Sports’ Pardon My Take podcast this week, expressed his displeasure with adjusting to the bitter cold temperatures and howling winds that can be found at Soldier Field late in the season. “It is very difficult to adjust to it, especially with the wind,” Fields said. “That’s what it’s all about is the wind. It can be cold, it can be 10 degrees. With no wind, you’re fine but with that 15-20 mph wind, you can’t fight it. It’s tough.”
The cold and windy weather at Soldier Field, better known as “Bear weather,” has been considered a key factor for Bears games over the last 50 years. Defensive players love it, knowing opposing offenses will likely struggle. But Fields can’t stand it and even offers up why it puts him at a disadvantage.
“The thing is about that weather, when it’s that cold, you have to bundle up,” Fields said emphatically. “Put a bunch of layers on and stuff like that. Your body’s cold so you’re not warmed up. I feel way slower in that cold weather so it’s tough. You of course want to try and stay warm on the sideline but it’s hard to stay warm in that weather.”
In case he wasn’t clear by those answers, Fields made sure to spell it out. “I hope we just get a dome. I don’t care if we’re at Soldier Field, Arlington Heights, I hope we get a dome.”
It’s not surprising to hear a quarterback talk about wanting to play in warmer elements. But with speed being such an important part of Fields’ game, hearing that he even feels slower in the cold weather puts things in a different perspective. Fields is one of the fastest quarterbacks in the league and has broken multiple runs of 60 yards or more. If he were playing indoors more frequently, would his production increase? Would it improve his scrambling ability?
Fields already set multiple NFL records this past year and became just the third quarterback in league history to rush for more than 1,000 yards in a season, totaling 1,143 yards and eight touchdowns. Interestingly enough, Fields totaled more than 70 rushing yards in all but one game at Soldier Field after the calendar turned to November, though his lowest output did come on Christmas Eve against the Buffalo Bills, one of the coldest games in Bears history. Fields had just 11 yards on seven carries the entire day.
Fields may need to wait a few years, but the Bears continue to move towards a move to Arlington Heights. They’re expected to close on the 326-acre property no later than the end of March and that date could even be pushed up according to ESPN 1000’s David Kaplan. Chairman George McCaskey already indicated last fall the team will look to build an enclosed stadium on the property should the deal materialize, erasing any doubt about any plans for an outdoor field.
For now, however, Fields will need to continue adapting to the cold weather. Hopefully it doesn’t slow him down too much but based on his production last year, he appears to be handling the elements well.
