Justin Fields Can't Hide From The Ticking Clock Anymore

Rest assured, the debacle on Sunday afternoon at Soldier Fields wasn't entirely on Justin Fields. The offensive line got beat up at the line of scrimmage. Play calling from Luke Getsy was suspect. However, one must try to remain fair and objective. The truth is that when evaluating the entire performance, the Chicago Bears quarterback looked too much like his 2023 self. He averaged less than six yards per pass attempt. Green Bay sacked him four times, and some of them were his fault for not getting the ball out.

Worst of all, he still keeps making poor reads over the middle.

Make no mistake. Fields will remain the starter for the rest of 2023. He should. The Bears need a full season of evaluation before they make a big decision at quarterback. Still, it's not a good sign that many of the same habits that held him back last year remain. He still can't handle zone coverage looks too, something opponents started running a lot of down the stretch last season. This is his new reality. Either he finds away around these issues, or he might be out of a job by next January.

Keep this in mind. Fields is now 5-21 as a starter.

Justin Fields has many things working against him.

The honeymoon period of being a 1st round pick is over. This is Year 3. Quarterbacks are expected to be solid professionals by this stage. He remains inconsistent as ever. At some point, the excuses of the offensive line and wide receivers not being good enough has to stop. The Bears offense isn't perfect, but it's talented enough to perform at a higher level than it did Sunday. Fields now has three touchdowns and six interceptions against the Packers. He's 0-5 against them as a starter. That is a surefire way to get yourself driven out of town.

Some people won't like the idea of dumping on Justin Fields. That is understandable. He's been dealt a difficult hand through his first couple of years. Still, this is the NFL. Either you sink or swim. Fields has 16 games left to change the narrative. There will be easier opponents on the schedule. He should get better as the season progresses. If he doesn't, the Bears will have their answer. They have two 1st round picks next year. That is plenty of ammunition to go quarterback hunting.