It’s been nearly a week since the Chicago Bears wrapped up the preseason with a narrow victory over the Cleveland Browns and while roster cutdowns and waiver claims have been top of mind, many people are still talking about the performance of quarterback Justin Fields from that game.
Fields was masterful, completing 14-of-16 passes for 156 yards and three touchdowns. He was getting it done in and out of the pocket with accurate throws and deceiving motions that confused the Browns defense.
It was just what Bears fans wanted to see from their second-year signal caller, but we have also seen this story before when it comes to young quarterbacks impressing in the preseason and failing in the regular season.
Notably, former 2017 first-round pick Mitchell Trubisky comes to mind during his rookie year when he lit the NFL world on fire in the preseason, but struggled when the games actually counted. It’s easy to chalk up strong preseason performances to vanilla coverages and playing against reserves, but this feels different with Fields, and it’s coming at the perfect time too.
Before diving into Fields’ play, let’s rewind back to 2017 with Trubisky and his first preseason. Even though this was Trubisky’s rookie year and Fields’ second season, both are young quarterbacks during this period and are learning new offenses. Trubisky wowed from the start, going 18-of-25 for 166 yards and one score in his debut against the Denver Broncos, giving Bears fans hope they had finally solved their quarterback woes.
His success didn’t stop there either as Trubisky continued to play strong in the preseason his next two games against the Arizona Cardinals and Tennessee Titans. He finished the preseason 36-of-53 for 364 yards, three touchdowns, and no interceptions in four games. Compare that stat line with Fields’, who went 23-of-30 for 243 yards, three touchdowns and no interceptions in three games and both players look very strong.
Like the previous weekend with Fields, the fanbase was through the roof over Trubisky’s potential during this period in 2017. Even national media pundits believed the Bears finally were over the hump when it came to their quarterback woes.
For all the praise being heaped on Trubisky, he was still operating as the backup to Mike Glennon, though, knowing he wasn’t starting Week 1. In fact, he didn’t know when he would enter a game for the first time, which creates uncertainty for a position that requires players to…
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