Former Ohio State Quarterback Justin Fields Accounts for 175 Total Yards, Two Touchdowns in NFL Preseason Debut with Chicago Bears

By Dan Hope on August 14, 2021 at 3:39 pm
Justin Fields
Jon Durr – USA TODAY Sports
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Justin Fields started slow but finished strong in his NFL preseason debut with the Chicago Bears on Saturday.

The former Ohio State quarterback accounted for 175 total yards and two touchdowns – one passing, one rushing – during his first game action in a Bears uniform, giving fans in Chicago their first glimpse of the dual-threat playmaking ability Fields brought to the Buckeyes for the past two years.

After taking over for starting quarterback Andy Dalton on the Bears’ first possession of the second quarter, Fields’ first three series as an NFL quarterback went poorly, as the Bears failed to gain a first down on any of them. He completed just two of his first six throws of the game for 10 yards and had a pair of fumbles, though neither were recovered by the Miami Dolphins.

Fields started to heat up on the Bears’ final possession of the first half, when he completed a pair of passes for first downs – including a 15-yard third-down strike to Justin Hardy – to set up a 53-yard field goal by Cairo Santos for the Bears’ first points of the game.

He finished the first half with 52 passing yards on seven completions and 12 attempts, plus two rushing yards on two attempts, but really started to hit his stride in the second half.

On the opening possession of the third quarter, Fields led the Bears on a 77-yard touchdown drive. He completed a 25-yard deep ball to Rodney Adams, converted a 3rd-and-9 with a 13-yard throw to Adams on the run and capped off the drive with an 8-yard run to the end zone.

Fields drove the Bears 70 yards down the field for another touchdown on their next possession. Two plays after running for a 21-yard gain to get the Bears into Miami territory, Fields connected with a wide open Jesse James on a throwback pass off play action for a 30-yard touchdown.

Fields, who played the entire second and third quarters before Nick Foles took over for the fourth quarter, finished his NFL preseason debut with 14 completions on 20 attempts for 142 passing yards and five carries for 33 rushing yards. He demonstrated the ability to extend plays outside the pocket and throw on the run that made him a special player at Ohio State and has given Bears fans high hopes that he could end the franchise's long run of mediocrity at the quarterback position.

NBA star and Ohio State fan LeBron James were among those who took to Twitter to comment on Fields' preseason debut.

While rookie quarterbacks often have to adjust to the increased speed of the game when they begin their NFL careers, Fields said that didn't bother him on Saturday.

“It was actually kind of slow to me, to be honest,” Fields told reporters after the game. 

His performance only strengthened the widely held belief that he, not Dalton, should be the Bears’ starting quarterback this season, although Bears coach Matt Nagy reiterated once again after the game that Dalton is still their starter.

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