Prior to his injury in Week 6 vs. the Vikings, Justin Fields was coming off back-to-back games with four touchdown passes each. In one of those games he threw for over 300 yards — his first 300-yard game of his career. In the other, he threw for 282 yards and secured the Chicago Bears their first victory of the 2023 season.
Fans were excited to see what Justin Fields could do against the Vikings in Week 6. Things did not start out well as Fields took a sack on the very first play. Fields didn't adjust for the blindside free blitzer and was hit relatively early. His play should have been to get rid of it right away to his first read, or adjust his first read and throw a hot route in the direction of the blitz (opposite side of his initial read). After that sack, things didn't go well for Justin Fields. I'd argue that the first play call was not great either, knowing how much the Vikings blitz, but Fields has to be better.
Fields didn't look awful in this game. He just looked rushed. On the very next drive, the team marched down for a field goal to tie the game 3-3. Fields made some good reads and throws during that drive. Cody Whitehair was still playing center and his snaps were awful. If you recall, the Chicago Bears actually benched him for Lucas Patrick in this game after Tyson Bagent came in for the injured Justin Fields. It would be the last time Whitehair played center for the Bears this season.
In this game, Justin Fields only threw the ball 10 times. He completed six of those attempts for a 60% completion percentage. Not great, but not awful either. The game never got away from the Bears, but it wasn't until Fields was knocked out of the game that Luke Getsy made changes to the scheme. He started max-protecting with six and seven blockers while moving the pocket. Bagent looked solid in his first regular-season action, but not good enough to spark a quarterback controversy. Well, at least for most teams. However, Chicago Bears fans always love the backup QB — even if just average.
Justin Fields has an opportunity for revenge as the Bears face the Vikings
Justin Fields looked solid in his return against the Lions but did more on the ground than through the air. He finished with only 169 yards passing but added 104 yards on the ground. His only touchdown came on a beautiful throw to DJ Moore. Fields completed nearly 70% of his passes and finished with a QB rating of 105.2. Maybe the best part was that he only took two sacks. Unfortunately, the last sack included a fumble and a safety to secure the win for the Lions.
Despite a solid game by Fields, getting another shot against the Vikings could be the best way to prove he is continuing to improve and grow. He needs to stack solid games before the end of the season if he wants to guarantee he's still here in 2024. This rematch gives him the perfect opportunity for revenge and to show he could have helped win in that close Week 6 loss to the Vikings had he not been injured.