In the span of just a few weeks, the Bears’ offense has gone from unwatchable to invigorating. Using their “mini bye” between Weeks 6 and 7 as a reset of sorts, the Bears have drastically changed their philosophy, unleashing quarterback Justin Fields, who Chris Simms of NBC Sports has already declared the best scrambler in football.
“I think he’s officially the best running quarterback in football,” said Simms during his appearance on God Bless Football, hosted by Jon “Stugotz” Weiner of The Dan Le Batard Show. “I know Lamar Jackson’s still out there. With Justin Fields and the age he is right now, I think he might be even more dangerous than Lamar Jackson. Trust me, I don’t say that lightly.”
Drafted 11th overall in 2021, Fields has been unstoppable of late, exploding for nine touchdowns (six passing, three rushing) over his last three games. He’s rushed for 320 yards in that span including 178 in last week’s loss to Miami, breaking a single-game record held by Michael Vick. For Simms, the only question is why the Bears didn’t hand the reins to Fields sooner, wasting almost two months trying to fit a round peg into a square hole.
“For the last year and a half, I’ve [asked], what has taken so long for them to do some of this stuff with Justin Fields? I don’t understand [it],” lamented Simms, who was relatively low on Fields coming out of Ohio State, rating him as the fifth-best quarterback in his draft class behind Zach Wilson, Trevor Lawrence, Mac Jones and Kellen Mond. “Early in the year I was like, are they trying to make him Peyton Manning, or are we going to let him be Lamar Jackson and be that kind of quarterback at some point? Now it’s taken the pressure off, where he doesn’t feel like he has to develop right now as a drop-back quarterback. It’s a brilliant move and they’re fun to watch.”
The Bears erred in treating Fields as a game-manager early in the year, but they’ve rectified that in recent weeks, showcasing the 23-year-old’s rare athleticism by placing a greater emphasis on designed runs. Fields’ explosiveness as a runner has “handcuffed” teams defensively, forcing them into man-to-man coverage.
“It's given him confidence. It’s given the team life,” said Simms of Fields’ remarkable progress. “After the Monday night game against the Patriots, I went, ‘Oh, this is a gamechanger.’ This changes their offense. They scored 33 points against the Patriots, 29 against the Cowboys—we’re talking about two of the better defenses in football—and then scored 32 points against the Dolphins. All because they had designed quarterback runs in the game plan. That has opened up everything.”
Comparing Fields to a former MVP in Jackson may be a tad premature, though his recent strides can’t be discounted, impacting games with his arm but especially his legs while emerging as one of football’s most dangerous dual threats.
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