Are New York Giants a make or break matchup for Justin Fields?
When Justin Fields takes on the New York Giants, it will be the second time he squares off with notable defensive coordinator Wink Martindale. Martindale was with the Baltimore Ravens when the Chicago Bears hosted them last season. Fields ended up getting injured in the game but spent the week preparing for Martindale’s unique defense.
Martindale is a notable coordinator because his philosophy is well-known. He likes to blitz a lot. After leading the NFL in blitz rate last season, the Giants are now second in the NFL with a blitz rate of 44.1%
Of course, while Justin Fields rarely passes as it is, his blitz rate against is down at 24.6%. However, this has been an issue. Fields is just 1-9 when passing out of the blitz, and he has taken four sacks.
However, the Giants may be the perfect team to help him get stronger at beating the blitz. While they rank second in the NFL in the number of blitzes sent, they also rank 30th in the NFL in adjusted sack rate.
This shows that far more often than not the Giants are blitzing and it is not working. This is obviously a huge test for Justin Fields.
The Giants will blitz, it is what they do. However, if Justin Fields remains calm in the pocket and goes through his reads, he should be able to find the open guy more often than not.
Of course, this is not his strong suit of Fields. On the flip side, he could see the blitz and panic, and we may see why Martindale is so hell-bent on blitzing, even if it had not been working.
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If Justin Fields can handle the blitz, it may be the kickstart of confidence that the Chicago Bears quarterback needs. If the team that struggles to get home when blitzing all of the sudden has a multiple sack day, you may be seeing all that you need to see, and we may learn that the game just will not slow down for Justin Fields.
Needless to say, Sunday is a big game for the Chicago Bears quarterback.