LAKE FOREST (670 The Score) -- If Bears rookie quarterback Justin Fields is nervous, you’d never know it.
If he has any apprehension about heading to Cleveland – barely two hours up the road from where he starred in college – and playing against a tough Browns defensive line in front of a raucous crowd all in the first start of his NFL career this Sunday, you couldn't tell from his first Wednesday press conference as the Bears’ QB1.
“I’m ready,” Fields said. “I’ve been preparing for this moment for a long time. My mindset doesn’t change, I’m still going to have to play my football and just prepare the best I can. Like I said before, get a lot of practice reps and study, study, study and get more comfortable and confident with the plays and stuff like that.”
Admittedly, the formality behind it all blunts the news a bit – veteran quarterback Andy Dalton’s left knee injury, while not season-ending, is expected to keep him out for a couple of weeks. So the 22-year-old Fields will start at Cleveland. Nick Foles will be the backup, while coach Matt Nagy remains adamant -- for now -- that whenever Dalton is healthy enough to play, he will.
“Andy being where he’s at right now, he’s not healthy, so he’s not our starter," Nagy said. "When he is healthy, he is our starter. It’s as simple as that.”
Of course, it won’t quite be as simple as that if Fields plays like the Bears expect him to. On Wednesday, Fields talked about how beneficial it was to finally be getting all of the first-team reps and that the only added responsibility of prepping for a road start is working out cadence issues. The Browns, as he said, “play fast, play with speed and play physical.”
Lining up across from Browns star pass rushers Myles Garrett and Jadeveon Clowney isn’t exactly the easiest first assignment to deal with.
“Of course, those guys are game-changers," said Fields, whom the Bears selected at No. 11 overall in the NFL Draft in late April. "They’re great players. We’re definitely going to have something set for them … They have a lot of great players on their defense. Myles Garrett, Jadeveon Clowney, they have a great secondary.”
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It helps that seemingly everyone in Halas Hall believes that Fields is already up for it. Nagy explained that while he expects Fields to make some mistakes early on, he’s confident making this decision because he knows the moment isn’t too big for Fields. He conceded that while the full Fields package probably won’t be on display Sunday, there’s a ton of excitement in offensive meetings about what this week has in store.
“There is that excitement to be able to see what Justin can do,” Nagy said. “But I think we all feel that. We understand that. That’s a part of this process. That’s been a part of this plan the whole time. Justin has known this whole time that he’s one play away — if Andy goes down, he’s one play away. Now it’s an opportunity for him to just come out here and show all of us what he can do.”
There’s no denying how tempting it’ll be to crown Fields as the undisputed starter going forward, especially if he plays well. There will be plenty of time in the coming days and weeks to pick at the team for what looks like, on the surface, just a contingency plan. Until then, Fields, Nagy and the rest of the team seem plenty content on basking in the moment. And who can blame them?
“If you told me seven, eight years ago that I’d be in this position, I probably wouldn’t believe you,” Fields said. “But I think, as time went along, I got more comfortable. I guess my goals kind of got bigger and bigger. Of course, I’m here. Around this time last year, I had an idea that I could be in this position right now, so actually seeing myself in this position, being able to get the start on Sunday, it’s amazing.”
Cam Ellis is a writer for 670 The Score and Audacy Sports. Follow him on Twitter @KingsleyEllis.