Bears QB Justin Fields had an impressive performance in his preseason debut in a 20-13 win over the Dolphins.
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While the preseason doesn’t usually inspire a ton of excitement, that certainly isn’t the case with the Chicago Bears. That has everything to do with rookie quarterback Justin Fields, who saw his first game action during Saturday’s preseason opener against the Miami Dolphins.
Fields received a standing ovation from Bears fans when he replaced Andy Dalton in the second quarter. And while it was a rough start for Fields, who had three consecutive three-and-outs with the second-team offense, he gained some momentum in the final minute of the first half with completions to Justin Hardy and Jesse James to set up for a 53-yard field goal by Cairo Santos to give Chicago its first points of the first half.
But it was the second half when Fields really shined. He led the Bears on back-to-back touchdown drives of 77 yards and 70 yards, where Fields flashed his impressive skillset, including his legs on an eight-yard touchdown run and an easy 30-yard touchdown to tight end Jesse James, who was wide open down the sideline.
Fields finished the game 14-of-20 for 142 yards with one touchdown and a 106.7 passer rating. He added five rushes for 33 yards and a score.
For most of the first half, the Bears offense struggled to move the ball and failed to get a first down until the final seconds of the first half. The first-string offense with Andy Dalton went three-and-out on both of their first-quarter series.
With Fields’ impressive debut, it’s puts even more pressure on Matt Nagy to stick with his guns and ride with Dalton as the starting quarterback for the regular-season opener.
Sure, one impressive game from Fields probably isn’t enough to change Nagy’s mind. But if Fields continues to play this way during the other two preseason games and during practice, Nagy is going to find a hard time justifying to himself, his team and Bears fans why Fields shouldn’t be the starting quarterback against the Rams in Week 1.
