Justin Fields is the (Preferably Near) Future of the Bears

Four years after Chicago Bears General Manager Ryan Pace traded up one spot to second overall to draft Mitchell Trubisky, he was allowed to draft another quarterback early. This time, the somehow still employed GM did the damn thing, trading up nine spots to take Ohio State QB Justin Fields. The biggest difference between the 2017 trade-up attempt to this one—Fields had a track record of playing well in college and for more than one season.

Chicago Bears fans’ six-decade-long nightmare is finally over, right?

Fields joins the Bears as the most promising and talented QB in team history. It is well documented that the position has been a barren wasteland, and it has been so devoid of talent that Trubisky ranks top 10 in team history in a lot of major categories. That said, Fields can become a legend in Chicago and a fantasy staple for years. There is an uncapped amount of excitement for what he can bring. How will he affect Chicago’s offense and who will be integral to his success?

How We Got Here

Fields is a Bear because of current management’s failure to identify and develop a quarterback. The list of Bears QB’s under Ryan Pace is concerning to put it nicely:

Gross.

There is no need to spill more digital ink on why these signal-callers did not work.

Fields’ story has a similar number of twists and turns. The Kennesaw, Georgia native went from relative unknown as a QB prospect to #2 in the Rivals250 rankings heading into his senior season of high school. He received 39 college offers but only considered one—the University of Georgia. He threw 39 pass attempts in his lone season with the Bulldogs before entering the transfer portal. He received an exemption to transfer and play immediately, allowing Ohio State to express interest in him with an opening at QB. The guy who Georgia ended up preferring over Fields? Jake Fromm.

Fields started two seasons for the Buckeyes. He went 20-2 as their starter and was a team captain in 2020. Fields averaged 262.5 passing yards, 47.9 rushing yards, and 3.375 total touchdowns per game in his final season at Ohio State. He was passed over by QB-needy teams in the 2021 NFL Draft, which allowed the Bears to trade up to the 11^th pick and select their guy.

What Fields Brings to Chicago

There are few quarterbacks that possess the athleticism and arm strength combination that Fields possesses. He can uncork deep passes, as well as adjust and put the correct touch needed on throws situationally. Fields has speed to burn and can create space to finish plays, something he will have to utilize in Chicago. He enters the NFL with a 2% career interception rate and can work through read progressions. Fields is tough. The hits he took against Clemson last season hurt to watch and he still finished the game, a convincing win. His confidence and toughness earned him respect from teammates, and he transformed into a leader.

The Issues for Fields

As a player, he holds the ball too long while looking for the perfect play. His games against Indiana and Northwestern magnified that issue, as well as what happens when your full arsenal of offensive weapons are not wide open. Fields will have to do a better job sensing pressure and avoiding unnecessary hits in the pros. Throwing the ball away is something Bears head coach and former QB Matt Nagy will have to imprint into Fields’s process.

His new team has talent and salary cap issues, oil and water when it comes to retaining your best players. Outside of draft day winner Allen Robinson, the Bears lack another trustworthy pass catcher. 2020 fifth-round rookie Darnell Mooney impressed and has field-stretching ability, but one promising season is an exception and not the rule. Anthony Miller has failed to produce after the Bears traded up to draft him in the second round in 2018 and has been in trade rumors all offseason. Cole Kmet showed signs of being a productive tight end as a rookie but has a lot of development left. Jimmy Graham is a red zone target, and that is it. Fields should have a stable of running backs that can catch the ball, including David Montgomery, Tarik Cohen, Damien Williams, and 2021 draft pick Khalil Herbert in some iteration.

The other concern for Fields’s growth and production is the players blocking for him. Guard-to-guard, Chicago is set if injuries do not hamper them again. Their tackle situation is one of the worst in the NFL and they arguably made it worse by releasing LT Charles Leno. He started 93 consecutive games for Chicago after being a seventh-round pick. He was a cap casualty, another Ryan Pace contract special. It appears the Bears will start second-round rookie Teven Jenkins at left tackle and either fellow rookie Larry Borom or Germain Ifedi at right tackle. Jenkins was another trade-up for Chicago and is an excellent run blocker, but questions remain about his pass blocking. Borom and Ifedi are uninspiring for a myriad of reasons (one is unproven and the other is bad). The tackle room got weaker in Chicago, something the team could not afford.

2021 was the second time Pace drafted a QB after spending money on one in free agency. Both times he had said prior to the draft that the QB signed would be the starter, only to draft their predecessor. That is shady business as Dalton and Fields battle for playing time in a 2017 reboot of a movie no one asked to see.

2021 Fantasy Outlook

If Justin Fields proves to be the best QB entering Week 1 of the season, he must start. Matt Nagy was in Kansas City when they drafted Patrick Mahomes and chose to sit him behind Alex Smith. Kansas City won games and made the playoffs before Mahomes took over. That has been one of the rare situations in which a QB benefitted (allegedly) from sitting. There is little to believe Chicago has a similar trajectory this season as that Chiefs team, and if Dalton gets the nod and starts poorly, does it make sense to throw Fields into the fire the way the Bears did with Trubisky his rookie season? Fields is a better quarterback than Trubisky and should show that quickly, but what will he have to do to usurp Dalton and force his coach’s hand?

Fields enters his rookie season with the opportunity to throw the ball to an alpha wide receiver, athletic pass catchers in Mooney and Kmet, and the ability to lean on a proven trio of running backs. Matt Nagy is a good play schemer and has a quarterback capable of executing in a way others have failed in Chicago. Trading up for a quarterback in the first 11 picks of the draft only to sit him is a surefire way to neutralize that talent, as well as the offense.

Justin Fields is currently QB11 and 117^th overall in George Kritikos’ dynasty rankings.

Bottom Line

• Justin Fields is one of the most athletic QBs heading into his rookie season and has a history of production with his arm and legs.
• Despite a lack of depth, Fields has offensive weapons capable of enhancing his games, as well as enhancing theirs.
• His rookie season could be troublesome with concerns on Chicago’s offensive line and little to improve it immediately.
• The Bears have a poor history of drafting and developing quarterbacks, but none have shown upside like Justin Fields.
• As of May 10, Justin Fields is currently being drafted as the QB17 (123.4 ADP) on Underdog Fantasy. Quarterbacks such as Kirk Cousins, Tua Tagovailoa, Baker Mayfield, and Daniel Jones are among the quarterbacks going after Fields.