Chicago Bears head coach Matt Nagy told reporters earlier this week that Andy Dalton won't play in the team's upcoming preseason finale, reaffirming that the veteran journeyman quarterback will indeed be their Week 1 starter.
But is the franchise making a mistake? Should first-round rookie quarterback Justin Fields -- who's already beloved in Chicago -- be under center instead? JR discussed the Bears' quarterback situation during Thursday's edition of the JR SportBrief show.
"Let's hope that the Chicago Bears aren't putting Andy Dalton out there and missing out on some early excitement with Justin Fields," JR said. "Is this the process? Is this what needs to take place?... Guess what, if Dalton is out there with a three-interception game or three-interception half, he's going to find his butt cemented to the seat. There's no patience. There's no leash...
"If anybody's going to throw some INT's, well, at least let Justin do it and learn in the process. You didn't draft this man No. 11 overall just to have him watch Dalton. Let him learn. Don't let him be abused, don't let him be sacked. He's already shown an amazing knack to get the hell out of the way, which is good... What Andy Dalton doesn't want is to play bad at Solider Field..."
Dalton, who turns 34 in October, signed a one-year free agent deal with the Bears back in March. As the Dallas Cowboys' backup last season, he wound up starting nine games, and finished the campaign with 2,170 passing yards, 14 touchdowns, eight interceptions, and a 64.9 completion percentage.
Prior to his short stint with the Cowboys, Dalton spent nine seasons with the Cincinnati Bengals. There, he amassed 31,594 yards and 204 touchdowns in 133 games, and led the franchise to five consecutive playoff appearances between 2011 and 2015.
As for Fields -- Chicago's quarterback of the future -- he's completed 23 of 39 passes for 222 yards with two touchdowns and 79 rushing yards through two preseason games. The Ohio State product will start the team's exhibition finale on Saturday night, and see roughly two quarters of action.
The Bears will open their 2021 campaign in Los Angeles against the Rams on Sept. 12. According to the William Hill Sportsbook, Chicago currently has the third-best odds (+500) to win the NFC North and the 10th-best odds (+2500) to win the conference.
JR's complete thoughts on Dalton, Fields, and the Bears can be accessed in the audio player above.
You can follow the JR SportBrief show on Twitter @JRSportBrief and Tom Hanslin @TomHanslin.