Why the Bears Should (And Likely Will) Move On From Justin Fields
Justin Fields is a young and extremely talented quarterback. He has the arm to threaten all areas of the field and is as dangerous with his legs as any quarterback we’ve ever seen. That’s not hyperbole, by the way. He rushed for 1,143 yards in 15 games two years ago, the second most in a season by a quarterback in NFL history.
But he’s got a few things working against him that will likely lead to the Bears trading him away in the coming days or weeks.
First, Fields is on the verge of becoming an expensive quarterback. He’s quickly approaching his 5th-year option, potential expensive franchise tags, and/or a deal that would likely exceed what Daniel Jones got last offseason.
Second, according to my sources, the Bears possess the #1 overall pick (That’s called journalism, folks). And the quarterback they will likely take with that pick, Caleb Williams, appears to be a good one. Not to mention, he’ll be in year 1 of his rookie deal with a few seasons before the Bears would need to commit big money to him (We’ll dive more into Williams in the coming days and weeks).
But let’s be honest here. The money and possession of the #1 overall pick would be irrelevant if Fields’ performance had been better during his first three seasons in the league. Which brings us to the third reason the Bears will likely move on from Fields; he just hasn’t shown the traits that translate to consistent high-level quarterbacking.
It’s not that he’s a bust or that he won’t be able to have success in this league. You can’t teach physical talent, and Fields has loads of it. At this point, however, there just hasn’t been enough growth in too many key areas. And the Bears can’t wait around hoping he turns the corner when they have a cheaper and seemingly better option.
Key Traits Are Lacking
There are too many red flags and uncertainties to Fields’ game that would make committing to him over Caleb Williams a mistake.
His inability to process quickly, see the field, and play with timing and rhythm are all concerns. There is no precision to his game, which explains more than anything why he’s an inconsistent quarterback. And historically, if a quarterback doesn’t show the ability to play with precision in his first 3 seasons, it’s highly unlikely that he’s suddenly going to start doing so in his 4th year or beyond.
The end result is a quarterback who can create big plays out of nothing, but who also doesn’t take the completions that are created by the scheme and keep the offense on schedule.
Take the below play for instance. First, you can see the route combination illustrated. This was a variation of a dagger concept: