Justin Fields had himself a day during the
Chicago Bears' Sunday practice on August 8th. He made several impressive throws, showcased his mobility, and also demonstrated his rapidly improving grasp of the offense by adjusting routes by his wide receivers. One of his best moments was caught on video by a fan in attendance, @SoIcyFlee. Their
footage provided a perfect encapsulation of how gifted the new Bears QB is.
At the snap, linebacker James Vaughters (#93) makes a nice inside move to flush Fields from the pocket. Without panicking, the QB scrambles to his left while keeping his eyes down the field. After a quick survey, he recognized Xavier Crawford (#47) had his back to the play. So he fired the pass to the inside where only Riley Ridley had a shot to make the catch. Touchdown. That is the sort of stuff that might look easy but is not.
He just makes it look that way.
[video width="1280" height="720" mp4="https://www.sportsmockery.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/08/Justin-Fields-escapes-the-collapsing-pocket-and-throws-a-side-arm-pass-to-Riley-Ridley-for-the-touch.mp4"][/video]
It is moments like this that have so many people wondering why the Bears are even bothering with the Andy Dalton plan. Yes, he's a veteran with more experience and should be a more than serviceable quarterback. Here is the problem. Fields can simply do more. His talent level is multiple tiers above Dalton. Bigger, stronger, faster, and boasting a better arm. If he is already grasping the offense so quickly, then doesn't it make more sense to just play him?
This isn't a debate that is likely to go away anytime soon. Not as long as Justin Fields keeps
doing things like this. In fairness, Dalton hasn't looked bad in camp either. He's looked efficient and in command, throwing with good anticipation and timing. Head coach Matt Nagy seems determined to hold steady to this path. Fields' time will come. That much is certain. He just wants to make absolutely sure the kid is ready before that happens.
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