CHICAGO (670 The Score) — Long after most of his Bears teammates had left the home locker room at Soldier Field on Sunday, quarterback Justin Fields remained seated in full uniform, his head hanging toward the floor.
Even Fields’ best performance in the NFL had failed to produce the much-needed win the Bears sought, as they blew a 21-point lead and lost 31-28 to the Broncos. Fields threw for a career-best four touchdowns and surpassed the 300-yard passing mark for the first time in his three-year NFL career, but he also had a pair of costly turnovers late in the game as the Bears suffered a heartbreaking defeat and fell to 0-4.
"I wasn’t able to finish it off,” Fields said. “Of course it hurt. I don’t know, it’s just, yeah, emotions flowing everywhere.”
For most of Sunday, Fields picked apart a porous Broncos defense that had embarrassingly surrendered 70 points in a loss to the Dolphins a week prior. He set a new Bears record with 16 consecutive completions – all of them coming to start this game. Fields’ first incompletion came on a Hail Mary heave at the end of the first half.
Fields finished 28-of-35 for 335 yards, four touchdowns and one interception. He and top receiver DJ Moore connected eight times for 131 yards and a touchdown, and Fields found tight end Cole Kmet seven times for 85 yards and two scores. After producing sensational moments as a rusher last season, Fields finally shined as a passer Sunday.
But when the Bears needed Fields to lead them down the stretch, he floundered with the opportunity.
With 7:05 remaining, Fields was stripped of the football by Broncos linebacker Nik Bonitto. Linebacker Jonathon Cooper scooped the ball up and ran 35 yards to the end zone for a touchdown. The ensuing extra point tied the game at 28-28 after the Bears had led 28-7 late in the third quarter.
On the ensuing drive, the Bears drove 57 yards on 11 plays to the Broncos’ 18-yard line. Facing a fourth-and-1 and looking to reclaim the lead with 2:57 remaining in the game, head coach Matt Eberflus kept the offense on the field with the hope of drawing the Broncos offsides with a hard count. After that was unsuccessful, Eberflus utilized a timeout and sent Fields back out with a read-option play from a shotgun snap.
Fields took the snap, made the read and elected to hand off to running back Khalil Herbert, who was stopped for no gain. The Bears turned the football over, and the Broncos kicked the go-ahead field goal five plays later.
“If you get it, the game is over most likely,” Fields said of the fourth-down decision. “You got to make them use their timeouts, probably get past the two-minute warning at least and then we’re kicking a field goal with under a minute left. I love the decision. It shows that coach has trust in us to convert on that in that situation. We just got to execute.
“If we would’ve got it, then I would be up here talking about how great of a call that was. It just didn’t go our way.”
Fields and the Bears still had a chance as they started from their own 25-yard line with 1:46 remaining in the game. It was another opportunity for Fields to lead a coveted game-winning drive that had eluded him through his first 30 games in the NFL.
The Bears reached midfield with 50 seconds remaining after Fields’ eighth connection to Moore. But on first down, Fields was penalized for intentional grounding, putting the Bears in a tough spot. Facing third-and-13 with 38 seconds remaining, Fields misfired to Kmet and was intercepted by Broncos safety Kareem Jackson.
Fields explained that he was attempting to throw Kmet open to beat man coverage but he stayed within the route, a miscommunication that allowed Jackson to jump in for the interception.
"It comes down to me and my fault at the end of the day,” Fields said. “I got to be better in that situation.”
Despite the ugly ending and outcome, Fields’ performance was by far his best individual day in the NFL – and a departure from his poor play in the first three games of this season. He threw for four touchdowns after hitting just three in the first three games. Entering the day, Fields had thrown for more than 200 yards just four times since the start of the 2021 season, and he was well past that mark in the second quarter Sunday.
Fields took advantage of opportunities within the Bears’ game plan, which called for more moving pockets and plays that maximized his dual-threat abilities.
Fields appeared comfortable and confident in leading the Bears’ offense.
“I was just happy that we were rolling,” Moore said. “I got to see the real us. That was nice.”
The No. 11 overall pick in the 2021 NFL Draft, Fields has struggled throughout his career. His future with the Bears has been called into question early in this third season of his, especially because Chicago made key acquisitions on offense this past offseason.
On Sept. 20, Fields cited "coaching" as one of the reasons for why he was overthinking amid his struggles, a comment that created a stir nationally and locally. Through all of that, Fields has worked to lead a team that has lost a franchise-worst 14 consecutive games dating back to last October.
"He’s doing a really nice job in the midst of a lot of (stuff) right now going on, that he’s been manning up and taking a leadership role for these guys,” offensive coordinator Luke Getsy said last week. “So, it’s been good to see him be able to put it on his shoulders and be the guy that wants to help make this thing get right.”
Ultimately, Fields' breakthrough game Sunday ended with the same frustrating result. His promising performance inspired hope for what still could be to come, while costly miscues marred the game as the Bears suffered another loss.
Fields’ 29th start in the NFL showcased progress and potential, but it ended with his 24th loss leading the Bears.
“We just got to finish,” Fields said.
Chris Emma covers the Bears, Chicago’s sports scene and more for 670TheScore.com. Follow him on Twitter @CEmma670.