The last three weeks have been all about the ascension of Justin Fields, and rightfully so. However, this would not happen if the Chicago Bears offensive coordinator Luke Getsy did not start pressing the right buttons to unleash his skill set.
Getsy struggled through the first six weeks, but you could argue that it was his first time calling plays in the NFL and it probably should take six weeks to adjust. The team had extra time between an embarrassing loss to Washington and an impressive win against New England. From that time you can see that Luke Getsy has improved. What are some clear indications?
4. Chicago Bears are calling more designed runs for Justin Fields
You could probably argue that Luke Getsy needed some time to realize all of the things he could do with Justin Fields. He has never coached an athlete like this before. Still, it was questionable how little Luke Getsy used Justin Fields on designed runs.
It was like he had Lamar Jackson and was calling plays for Tom Brady. Even Jackson would struggle, and at his status, he would have been mad. Fields bought in and tried, but eventually, Getsy realized it was best to use his running quarterback as a running quarterback,
From weeks 1-6, the Chicago Bears had 11 called plays for the quarterback to run the ball. From weeks 7-9, that number shot up to 15. He is now fourth in the NFL in designed runs behind just Kyler Murray, Lamar Jackson, and Jalen Hurts. That is who he should be with, not Geno Smith and Joe Burrow, who are the names he was near before week seven.
I do not have to tell you about the results. Fields had the most rushing yards in a single game, and while some were scrambles, a lot of designed runs also picked up easy first downs and kept the defense on their feet. This has been a great shift by Luke Getsy.
3. Chicago Bears are moving the pocket more often.
Think about the touchdown pass Justin Fields had against Miami when he faked a handoff hard, spun his body around, rolled out of the pocket, and hit Kmet for an easy play. This is what happens when you have a quarterback like Justin Fields who is such a running threat.
However, as we noted, Luke Getsy was not doing this nearly enough. He was looking to keep Fields inside the pocket, and it was limiting the playbook. Through the first six weeks, the Chicago Bears had Fields pass from the pocket on 64% of his snaps. That number is down to 50% over the last three weeks.
Getsy is realizing that Fields is best when throwing outside of the pocket. He is also best when rolling out, and is obviously excellent at selling the fake. Fields will break the pocket on his own at times, but the shift is notable in how many times Getsy is designing Fields to roll out.
This is getting the defense’s attention because he can run from there. It is getting Fields in a more comfortable spot as a thrower, and getting his receivers open more often. The change has been great, and you have to assume that more fakes and rollouts are coming to the Chicago Bears.
2. Chicago Bears are calling more play action
The Chicago Bears had a great run game, so it was a bit surprising that they were not using the play-action very heavily. However, that changed in a bit way in the past couple of games. During the first six weeks, the Chicago Bears called play action on 24% of the dropbacks that Justin Fields had.
That number has shot up to 52% over the past three weeks. Perhaps Getsy was realizing that his run game was earning respect. Early into the season teams were not giving it any attention, but after a few weeks of explosive runs, it become obvious that play action was going to get respect.
Once he figured that out, it started to get better. As we noted, creativity went up, and it started to make Justin Fields more lethal. It also makes it much easier to get him outside of the pocket without running quick sprint outs or worrying about defenders crashing on him.
Play action freezes the defenders, and gets him a clear lane to the outside. This is when Fields can read, throw, and run at his best. With the run game humming, the team should go from a below-average play-action team to one of the highest rates in the NFL.
1. Chicago Bears have increasing screens, and the wide receiver runs
Luke Getsy wants to get the ball in his wide receiver’s hands. It gives Justin Fields a few layups, which helps because he is a three-point shooter. It also helps with guys like N’Keal Harry, and Chase Claypool, who weigh over 220 pounds and can break tackles.
So, the Chicago Bears have ran more screens. They are up from 16.4% to 21.1%, according to PFF. Beyond that, they have made it even easier and just handed the ball to the wide receivers more often. They had five handoffs to wide receivers for 51 yards in the first six games. Over the past three, they have six rushes for 75 when handing to the wide receivers.
This is an obvious improvement, and when you consider it was a strength for Chase Claypool in Pittsburgh, as well as N’Keal Harry in New England, it will only continue for both in Chicago.
The screens are key to keeping the defense honest and helping Justin Fields as a deep passer. The wide receive runs help the running backs, but also make it easier to roll Justin Fields out. When Fields runs play action up the gut, a wide receiver is running left on jet motion, and Fields now has the ball rolling right eyes are all over the place, and life gets easier for Justin Fields.
You have already seen the effects of this, and it should only grow as Getsy gets more comfortable. Chicago Bears fans have to be excited about the way their offensive coordinator is trending.