Bears' Justin Fields is in great shape to run for 1,000 yards again
Chicago Bears quarterback Justin Fields showed last year that he's more than capable of putting the entire offense on his back. With a poor offensive line and limited weapons, Fields still made plenty of plays for the Bears. Especially on the ground, where he became just the third quarterback in NFL history to run for […]
Chicago Bears quarterback Justin Fields showed last year that he's more than capable of putting the entire offense on his back.
With a poor offensive line and limited weapons, Fields still made plenty of plays for the Bears. Especially on the ground, where he became just the third quarterback in NFL history to run for more than 1,000 yards on the ground.
Fields' prowess on the ground made him one of the NFL's most electric players in 2022 and he carries that title heading into 2023. As great as it was, he knows another 1k season on the ground is not only risky, but it means the Bears offense hasn't taken the expected steps forward.
His coaches are of the same mindset. His success on the ground came from more out of need than design. The team still plans on using his legs in 2023, just not as much; and hopefully, in different circumstances.
“Most of that is a natural thing once you’re in the moment, but decision-making, we’re working on every single day,” offensive coordinator Luke Getsy said back in June. “Timing and rhythm we’re working on every single day. And lastly, the situation that you’re in. Putting that all together, you’re just increasing the football IQ so you know better when to take those opportunities and when not to, because there are plenty of times on film that he shouldn’t do it, and even though it worked out for us, in the long run, there’s a better decision. There’s a better way.”
At the same time, Fields is in even better position to run for 1,000 yards or more in 2023. If he does that, not only will he be the only Bears QB to run for 1k yards in back-to-back seasons, he'll be just the second NFL QB to do that, a la Lamar Jackson.
The Bears have so many more weapons than they had last year, which will draw attention away from Fields. If it were just Fields again like last season, defenses would be more than happy to make his life as hard as possible and let the likes of Equanimeous St. Brown, Chase Claypool, Dante Pettis, Khalil Herbert and others beat them on offense.
No defense is going to let D.J. Moore off the hook. Defenses are going to have to respect Tyler Scott's speed. And the offensive line will be able to provide enough time in the passing game and enough lanes in the running game to where Getsy's offense should be able to an operate at an efficient, consistent pace.
In all, it's easy to see why Fields is set up for a huge 2023 season and a lot of the success can still be found on the ground, where he currently reigns as the NFL's best QB.
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Featured image via Mike Dinovo-USA TODAY Sports
