The Chicago Bears are one game into the Caleb Williams era. While Williams was playing in his first-ever NFL game, it was hard for Bears fans not to pay attention to the Steelers/Falcons game, as Justin Fields was making his debut as the Steelers quarterback.
The Bears traded Fields to the Steelers over the offseason and the consensus was that he'd be the backup quarterback with Russell Wilson serving as the starter. Well, before the game kicked off, Wilson was ruled inactive and Fields was the guy for Pittsburgh in Week 1 against the Falcons.
While the Steelers won the game, it wasn't because of Fields. The defense made life miserable for Kirk Cousins and the Bears while the offense put up six field goals, which ended up being enough to win the game for Pittsburgh.
Fields completed 17-of-23 passes for 156 yards while not throwing for a touchdown or an interception. When looking at his pass chart from the game, maybe the Bears were onto something by sending him away and opting to take Caleb Williams first overall.
Justin Fields pass chart looks like a pitcher who’s about to be sent down to the minors pic.twitter.com/WSOB7m5Eo6
— Warren Sharp (@SharpFootball) September 9, 2024
That's hilarious from the standpoint of the Bears being right to trade Fields, but it's a little less fun when considering what it might mean for him holding up his end of the trade. Chicago gets a fourth-round pick if Fields plays 51 percent of the Steelers' snaps this year, a figure that suddenly looked great after Russell Wilson was ruled out in Week 1.
However, if things keep up the way they're looking in Pittsburgh, it might not be long before Wilson is firmly in control of the starting job and the hopes for a fourth-round pick in Chicago fade.
Justin Fields' pass chart shows Bears made the right call in trading him
As Warren Sharp's post displays, Fields and the Steelers offense were playing not to lose. The former Bears quarterback was clearly avoiding throwing in the direction of star Falcons safeties Jessie Bates and Justin Simmons and really -- who can blame him?
That being said, Sharp's analysis of Fields' pass chart looking like "a pitcher who's about to be sent down to the minors" was quite funny. The Steelers offense struggled to do much of anything but Fields and the Steelers got it done and maybe that's all that matters at the end of the day.
Now, of course, Williams and the Bears didn't exactly light it up offensively either but at least Fields' performance with the Steelers wasn't much better. Had Fields gone out there and torched the Falcons and Williams threw for under 100 yards, it might have been a rough week for the Bears.
Fortunately, neither quarterback wowed anyone. Bears fans will continue to keep a close eye on Fields assuming he continues to start for Pittsburgh. Let's hope that Chicago didn't make a mistake in trading him and that Williams is indeed the right guy for the Bears.