Justin Fields is getting harder and harder to defend in public these days. The Chicago Bears have done everything they can to help him succeed this season. They upgraded his cast of weapons. His protection seems to have improved. It's the second year in the same offensive system. While nothing is ever perfect, a quarterback in his third season should start playing his best football. Fields has done anything but that. Through two weeks, he has a 70.7 passer rating with two touchdowns and three interceptions. If that weren't bad enough, even his rushing stats have completely disappeared.
People talk about all the problems he has. The most persistent is his constant inability to throw with timing and anticipation. This leads him to hold the football too long in the pocket, which in turn leads to too many hits and sacks. All of this is a valid discussion. Yet it has overshadowed perhaps the most alarming truth about Fields that isn't talked about enough.
He is arguably at his worst in clutch situations.
Since arriving in 2021, Fields has thrown 94 passes in games where the Bears were trailing with four minutes or less to play. In those situations, he's only completed 55.32% of those passes with three touchdowns and a staggering eight interceptions. Since his rookie year, Fields has faced a drive-to-tie-or-win situation ten times. He failed to score in nine of those opportunities.
This is not an isolated event with Justin Fields, either.
Back in 2019, he showed the same bad tendencies. Ohio State was playing Clemson in the Fiesta Bowl for a chance to reach the national championship. Clemson had just taken the lead 29-23. Still, Fields had 1:47 left to make a drive to tie the game. The Buckeyes got down to Clemson's 23-yard line. They still had 43 seconds left. There was more than enough time. Sure enough, Fields threw a backbreaking interception in the end zone, likely the result of a miscommunication with his wide receiver.
Sound familiar?
It's time to accept the reality that this might be who Justin Fields is. He's a ridiculous athletic talent that can make eye-popping plays. However, when it comes to playing the quarterback position, he doesn't have the necessary mental faculties. He's too slow on reads, has no timing or rhythm, and, most troubling of all, is at his worst in got-to-have-it situations. People can talk bad about Jay Cutler, but nobody ever questioned his ability to deliver in the clutch.
Fields can't.
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