Bear Necessities: Ryan Poles impressed with Justin Fields’ growth

Bears GM Ryan Poles has noticed Justin Fields’ growth during the preseason. “I think there’s progress being made.”

This is our online morning newsletter, Bear Necessities. Subscribe to get the latest Bears news delivered to your mailbox every day.

Bears quarterback Justin Fields is entering a pivotal second season, where the expectation is he’ll take a step forward in his development.

While there are concerns about Fields’ supporting cast, his performance in the preseason was encouraging. Especially in the finale against the Browns, where Fields completed 14-of-16 passes for 156 yards with three touchdowns, no interceptions and a 146.9 passing rating.

Fields’ improvement in Luke Getsy’s scheme has been obvious — his footwork, his quicker release, his poise. This year will be crucial for his development, and general manager Ryan Poles is already noticing the growth.

“I think there’s progress being made,” Poles said. “He looks comfortable. [With] his technique and his fundamentals and his feet—and then a new offense, new coaches, new system—there’s a lot going on both physically and mentally. I thought as the preseason has played out and even practice, you could see things start to slow down and him read defenses quicker and pull the trigger, and it was really cool to see him finish up that way.”

Now, the real test is set to begin in next Sunday’s season opener against the 49ers, where Fields will face a tough San Francisco defense.