The Chicago Bears were three-point home underdogs vs. the Las Vegas Raiders in a rather unusual matchup. Neither team would have their starting quarterback under center, as Justin Fields was nursing a thumb injury while Jimmy Garoppolo was out with an injured back.
That set the field for a non-stellar QB matchup of undrafted DII product Tyson Bagent trying to lead the home team over veteran backup Brian Hoyer. But in reality, the game was much more entertaining than most fans initially thought.
Bagent looked way more comfortable within the offense than Fields. He completed 21 of 29 passes for 162 yards and a touchdown, adding three rushes for 24 yards as well. The Bears moved the chain with D’Onta Foreman as well en route to a big 30-12 win over the visitors.
That’s why there was some speculation about Fields’ status as QB1 once he was back to full strength. However, HC Matt Eberflus wanted to make it clear that the position isn’t up for grabs right now, and the Bears will continue to roll with Fields as the starter.
Bears To Stick With Justin Fields
“Justin is our starting quarterback. Tyson’s the backup; he came in and did a nice job,” Eberflus said after the game. “We don’t know where Justin is, we’ll see where he is, if it’s a week-to-week thing, we’ll assess it more tomorrow.”
Bagent had already looked quite decent subbing in for Fields last week. But he’s a backup and went undrafted for a reason, and he could face more trouble against rival defenses now that they have more footage and a bigger sample size to prepare for his strengths.
Fields Is Not The Problem
Moreover, the fact that Bagent looked better and more comfortable than Fields within the offense headlines the biggest issue with the Bears. Their offense isn’t suited to Fields’ strengths, and there’s only so much a young quarterback can do while playing in an unfavorable system.
Bears‘ OC Luke Getsy has been reluctant to adapt and let Fields roll out of the pocket. He’s at his best when he’s making plays with his feet and keeping defenses guessing as opposed to staying flat-footed between the tackles; that’s never been his game.
Justin Fields
Fields is a mobile, dual-threat, athletic quarterback who needs more freedom to be at his best. He’s never going to thrive in that offensive system because it’s not built to highlight his strengths. And that’s not on him; that’s the coach’s fault.
The Bears are sitting on a 2-5 record and have a legitimate chance to get the first two picks in the upcoming NFL Draft. Should that be the case, they could consider moving on from Fields to take Caleb Williams out of USC. That means the rest of the season will likely be an audition for the Ohio State product.
see also
Dick Butkus passed away: What happened to the legendary linebacker of the Bears?
Fields has always been a remarkable talent, and he could still turn out to be a star of the game. But that’s not going to happen until his coaches put him in a position to succeed and do what he does best.
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