How Lamar Jackson Just Proved Why Justin Fields Experiment Must End

Lots of Chicago Bears fans want to continue forward with Justin Fields as the Chicago Bears' starting quarterback. They think his immense talent and steady progress are enough to justify another season, this time with what should be a better offensive coordinator in Shane Waldron. It is believed with some patience and more help, he can be another Lamar Jackson. Yeah, about that.

The Baltimore Ravens quarterback will likely win a second MVP once the season concludes. However, it will be another season without reaching a Super Bowl. Jackson fell to the Kansas City Chiefs in the AFC championship game. It was a rough performance for the Ravens star, highlighted by two brutal turnovers, including an interception in the end zone.

Nobody wants to admit it, but this wasn't the first playoff disappointment Jackson has served up. Across his career, he now has six touchdown passes and seven interceptions in postseason play. He also has six fumbles. What makes it hurt even more is this team was by far the best of his tenure in Baltimore. They had a great defense, a great running game, and an array of talented pass catches.

It didn't matter. Jackson still came up small when the team needed him.

Lamar Jackson is better than Fields.

That is something that must be reinforced here. He's a better runner and a better passer. Yet his playoff record isn't stellar. He's had so much help around him for years. Great quarterbacks elevate their play under such circumstances. Jackson hasn't. This is why the continued belief in Fields seems so misplaced. Run-oriented quarterbacks are fun to watch. They can produce some of the most jaw-dropping highlights in NFL history. However, there is one persistent theme with most of them.

They come up short in the playoffs.

Lamar Jackson, Michael Vick, Randall Cunningham, Colin Kaepernick, and Cam Newton may have ushered in a new era at the position. The problem is that they all have the same thing in common. No rings. That is because when each of them was asked to win a big game with their arms, they failed. There has been no indication to this point that Fields will be any different.

People will argue the situation around him just needs to be better. Then he'll become the superstar everybody predicted. No, he'll be close to what Jackson is. As we've seen, that isn't good enough.