I’ve thought about it.
I’ve slept on it.
I’ve looked at the numbers.
I’ve looked in the mirror.
Gazed into the abyss.
I still don’t know.
I don’t know if Justin Fields is a #1 NFL QB that can take you places.
The start to this season has been an unmitigated disaster.
29 starts is a BIG sample size.
You look at other young QBs and you probably already feel better about CJ Stroud’s future than Fields.
You definitely knew what Mahomes, Burrow, Trevor Lawrence, and Josh Allen were by year 3.
And I am sure that most of you reading this are probably like “he’s a running back.
He can’t see it.
He doesn’t have it”.
They might be right.
I guess I am just not fully out yet.
Look at his career arc:
2021: The last days of Matt Nagy and Pace.
An era that was ending.
A coach that had already failed with a different young QB.
Fields coming in as a rookie after a covid truncated final year at OSU.
A weird first year as a pro thanks to circumstances.
2022: New everything.
New experience as the only QB1.
The team was horrible.
But also…no expectations.
Everyone knew the 2022 Bears were in tear down mode.
Fields was a cornerstone, but the cement trucks for the foundation hadn’t even left yet.
He was on his own and he became a human highlight reel.
The Bears were terrible, but fun.
Fields provided all the excitement and the promise that came from a guy who needed more help.
2023: A totally inconceivable circus to start the season.
A still missing Defensive Coordinator.
A Head Coach either doesn’t know what is going on or isn’t actually in charge.
Either way the locker room feels like a complete mess.
One player already dismissed from the team.
Fields looked like had completely regressed instead of building on late season success.
Is that on him, on coaches, or both?
Against Denver we finally saw the QB we had always dreamed he would become.
Nobody is going to confuse the Broncos for the 2000 Ravens.
They’re a pathetic defense.
That doesn’t mean that Fields didn’t do his job picking them apart.
The ball came out on time.
He found the open guy.
He extended plays with his legs while keeping his eyes down field.
It does feel like his future is going to be determined by the next 13 games.
That might also determine the future of Poles and Eberflus as well.
Can he be good enough to save everyone’s job?
Can he be good enough to just make the next coaching staff believe in him for his final year?
The best case scenario for the Bears at this point is still Justin Fields being the future.
I don’t know if he’s that guy.
I hope he is because the Bears need dudes.
Find a way to get a legitimate pass rusher and Marvin Harrison and keep building.
That is probably an unlikely scenario at this point, but I hope we get there.
