Justin Fields Needs To Show Improvement In These Areas Upon His Return

The Chicago Bears returned to practice on Monday after having the weekend off following their Thursday Night win over the Carolina Panthers last week. Chicago will travel to Detroit to play the Lions, as quarterback Justin Fields is expected to return after missing the previous four weeks with a dislocated thumb. With Fields' long-term future with the Bears hinging on his performance over the next seven games, the third-year quarterback must demonstrate growth in a few areas of weakness that hindered him before his injury.

Fields Must Show Improvement Following An Extended Period On The Sideline

Although Fields had performed extremely well in his two games before the start against the Minnesota Vikings, in which he dislocated his thumb, there were still recurring issues with a few aspects of the quarterback's play. Some of those issues for the third-year starter included taking unnecessary sacks, having trouble reading the opposing defense, and throwing to open receivers when they had a significant amount of separation from their defender. Despite having back-to-back games with four touchdowns, Fields struggled during moments in those two performances with those repetitive issues, which is driving discussion on whether the Bears should look to draft a quarterback in the 2024 NFL Draft.

The debate related to Fields' struggles was amplified by backup quarterback Tyson Bagent during the four games the undrafted rookie started for the injured quarterback. In the four starts, Bagent was sacked only four times as he consistently found open receivers and quickly got the football out of his hands. Fields, in his four starts leading up to the injury, had been sacked 14 times.

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Although Bagent lacked the physical arm strength to make certain throws, he still demonstrated a strong command of Chicago's offense and was able to consistently lead them on scoring drives. In the four starts by the rookie, the Bears offense had three or more scoring drives in three of those four games. Fields, before his back-to-back four touchdown performances against Denver and Washington, struggled consistently to lead Chicago's offense on multiple scoring drives in the team's other games. Against Tampa Bay, Kansas City, and Minnesota, the Bears' offense had four or more offensive drives that ended with either a punt or a turnover.

Another area in which Bagent excelled where Fields had previously struggled was finding the open receiver in the offense. The rookie undrafted quarterback avoided sacks because he got the ball out quickly, knowing where the open pass-catcher was on each play. Even in his top performances against Washington and Denver, Fields still had moments where he didn't know where to go with the ball, despite film showing he had open targets downfield to throw to.

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Fields Has All The Tools To Do Overcome These Obstacles That Have Hampered Him

During Fields' absence, Chicago's offense has found stability on the offensive line and the pass-catching positions. Although Bagent quickly got the ball out to avoid sacks, the Bears' offensive line assisted significantly, as they had the same starting five offensive linemen for the last four games. Chicago's passing offense found productivity as Bagent often targeted DJ Moore, Cole Kmet, Darnell Mooney, and Tyler Scott over the four-game span.

Additionally, Chicago is not only expected to get Fields back against the Lions but also starting running back Khalil Herbert, who has been sidelined since Week 5 with a foot injury. It will be the best-supporting cast the third-year quarterback has played with all season, which is especially important as Chicago will face first-place Detroit. Fields will have no excuse not to play well in his return, especially with ten days to prepare against a Lions defense that currently ranks 20th in pass defense.

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If Fields wants to show that he is Chicago's long-term answer at quarterback, he will have to do it over their next four games against three opponents vying for the playoffs. The Bears will play the Vikings, Browns, and Lions twice over the next five weeks, with two of those opponents having top-tier defenses. Fields can demonstrate that he has overcome his weaknesses by avoiding sacks and getting the ball out quickly, especially against Cleveland, who currently has the league's best defense.

Fields doesn't have to go on a dominant run over the Bears' final seven games of the season, but he does need to show growth and a positive play on a consistent level. Chicago's quarterback can't be taking sacks because he doesn't know where to go with the football, nor can he have games with 150 passing yards or less. Fields needs to show command of the Bears' offense, whether they win or lose, so that the franchise knows whether or not they have the elite quarterback they thought they drafted back in 2021.