Bears rookie quarterback Justin Fields will be making his first start on Sunday against the Browns after Andy Dalton suffered a bone bruise in his knee that will keep him out of the game. Despite trading away a future first round pick for Fields and having seen how his athletic ability can save broken plays, head coach Matt Nagy continues to insist that Dalton will remain the starter after he heals from his injury.
That’s nonsense. Or at the very least, shortsighted. For a second, set aside the fact that the Bears are wasting time getting their first round pick valuable reps and experience that will help him in his career moving forward. Fields is good enough right now to cement himself as the starter for the rest of the season and accelerate his reign as the new king of football in Chicago.
Fields played for a bit in the Bears 20-17 win over the Browns as Dalton came in and out of the game due to injury. The box score on Fields’ performance isn’t anything to get excited about. Fields completed just six of his 13 pass attempts for 60 yards an and interception while taking two sacks that cost the Bears 25 yards.
While he certainly did have his rookie moments, most notably an interception thrown right into the hands of a pass rusher peeling off into coverage, two of his 13 passes should have been much bigger plays that would have helped his final numbers — in turn, helping the narrative surrounding his first real bit of NFL action.
The first pass was a beautiful pass to star wide receiver Allen Robinson that should have been complete for a 35-yard touchdown, but the ball slipped right through Robinson’s hands in the endzone.
On the next drive, Darnell Mooney let a pass bounce off of his fingertips in the corner of the endzone and the Bears ended up kicking a field. This isn’t the easiest pass in the world to haul in, but this is still a pass that a capable NFL receiver, which Mooney is, should be expected to bring in.
Those two passes being hauled in might have gotten Fields the nod over Dalton moving forward, but instead his final numbers featured an interception and a strip sack that he recovered himself. Fields will have mistakes throughout the course of his rookie year, but as a passer, he isn’t any worse than Dalton and has a significantly higher upside.
Also, the Browns defense hasn’t exactly been dominant this season. There’s no shame in giving up plays to the Chiefs to start the season, but Tyrod Taylor and the Texans were moving the ball like an elite offense before Taylor exited the game with a hamstring injury that will leave him out for a few weeks. There will be opportunities for Fields to gash the Browns and create big plays, if the Bears offensive line can keep the Browns’ talented defensive line off their rookie quarterback.
Nagy is just saying that Dalton will continue as the starter because he’s backed himself into that corner. Publicly, he’s dismissing the idea that Fields can put together a convincing performance. If Fields puts together a performance that shows why he was worth two first round picks, he’ll have to keep him in for the rest of the season.
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