Bears talk 2.0; Fields era begins for real for real

[bad knees]

I would say he's already played in more games than Mahomes did. Maybe I'm I'm wrong.

I am talking about the general approach of making Fields watch as opposed to starting him from day 1. As Fleet has noted, if you want Fields to succeed, then start working in May on developing an offense that maximizes his capabilities and minimizes the flaws where he still needs to develop. Get him comfortable with the first string guys. Do everything you can to help him adjust as quickly as possible to the speed and complexity of NFL defenses. The Bears have done none of this, because they are committed to the idea of Fields sitting and watching for some undefined period of time. It may be due to a promise having been made to Dalton, but I think it is more due to Nagy not having much more than the KC way to lean on in terms of the way he thinks about football.

I highly doubt that the Bears have been doing nothing to help Fields prepare to play in the nfl. I am positive they are giving him as much info as he can absorb, and working with him every chance they get. I can't imagine a higher priority for what they do in practice. At the same time, Dalton is new, too, and since they made him the starter, it's also urgent to get him up to speed with the starters and the offense as well. But it's not like they are just telling Fields to go sit in the corner because he'll have time later to pick things up.

I made a list of the things that the Bears should have been doing, and then stated that they had done none of those things. One of those things was doing everything they could to help Fields get used to NFL defensive speed and complexity. The Bears have not done that, because they chose to prioritize integrating Dalton and getting him ready to start. They have done some things to get Fields ready, but not nearly what they could have and should have been doing. Did you really think I was saying that the Bears have told Fields to sit in a corner? I don’t think so.

[Susan]

Umm, the Packers defense sucks.

[Brothaman33]

So after going back and watching Fields I came away with a few things. I do think he will be starting next week so there will be much more to look at but...

1. He reeeeeaaaally held onto the ball in the pocket. He definitely has escapability, but his pocket awareness has got to improve, and fast. Alot of QB's just have that sense when the tackles get beat to move up or move at all, but I saw very little of that. He'll run when the pocket completely collapses but with how bad our line is, speed rushers off the edge will be a problem if he can't sense them at all.

2. Staring down recievers. There we're multiple times when his head didn't ever move off of his first read. For a sure a common rookie QB problem, but going through progressions was something that some we're concerned about coming in. Will be looking for improvement in that area.

3. I wasn't really paying attention to this early, but he seems to have a pretty "loopy" or "slingy" arm action. I don't know if it's nessecarily slow, but he really gets into his 3/4 or even sidearm throws. Curious if there is anything to make if that.

4. Pocket passing. Fields plays best at a brand of "backyard" football. But if Nagy makes him sit in the pocket and play QB, I think he is really gonna struggle early. IMO he HAS to get him moving. He is gonna be faster then almost everyone on the line and its crucial to get him moving on bootlegs, play action and side to side.

I'm curious how the Browns play him. Initially I was thinking they would just blitz, blitz, blitz and confuse him, but I'm not so sure that's the right approach. If our line is this bad, and you know he can escape quickly and easily, I'm not so sure that I would just rush 4 and sit in zone. Someone is gonna beat one of our tackles and you can sit and spy him to make sure he doesn't hurt you with his legs.

Sunday will be interesting.

[Dresden]

I am talking about the general approach of making Fields watch as opposed to starting him from day 1. As Fleet has noted, if you want Fields to succeed, then start working in May on developing an offense that maximizes his capabilities and minimizes the flaws where he still needs to develop. Get him comfortable with the first string guys. Do everything you can to help him adjust as quickly as possible to the speed and complexity of NFL defenses. The Bears have done none of this, because they are committed to the idea of Fields sitting and watching for some undefined period of time. It may be due to a promise having been made to Dalton, but I think it is more due to Nagy not having much more than the KC way to lean on in terms of the way he thinks about football.

I highly doubt that the Bears have been doing nothing to help Fields prepare to play in the nfl. I am positive they are giving him as much info as he can absorb, and working with him every chance they get. I can't imagine a higher priority for what they do in practice. At the same time, Dalton is new, too, and since they made him the starter, it's also urgent to get him up to speed with the starters and the offense as well. But it's not like they are just telling Fields to go sit in the corner because he'll have time later to pick things up.

I made a list of the things that the Bears should have been doing, and then stated that they had done none of those things. One of those things was doing everything they could to help Fields get used to NFL defensive speed and complexity. The Bears have not done that, because they chose to prioritize integrating Dalton and getting him ready to start. They have done some things to get Fields ready, but not nearly what they could have and should have been doing. Did you really think I was saying that the Bears have told Fields to sit in a corner? I don’t think so.

I dont know what's normally done, but I'm assuming Fields did not work with the first team because it was more important to get the person who was going to start those reps. Does the second string qb typically get snaps with the first team?

As for the offense, what do you want them to do, install a whole new offense for Fields? I'm sure they worked on some plays for him, and we've seen some of those when he's been put in games.

[bad knees]

I highly doubt that the Bears have been doing nothing to help Fields prepare to play in the nfl. I am positive they are giving him as much info as he can absorb, and working with him every chance they get. I can't imagine a higher priority for what they do in practice. At the same time, Dalton is new, too, and since they made him the starter, it's also urgent to get him up to speed with the starters and the offense as well. But it's not like they are just telling Fields to go sit in the corner because he'll have time later to pick things up.

I made a list of the things that the Bears should have been doing, and then stated that they had done none of those things. One of those things was doing everything they could to help Fields get used to NFL defensive speed and complexity. The Bears have not done that, because they chose to prioritize integrating Dalton and getting him ready to start. They have done some things to get Fields ready, but not nearly what they could have and should have been doing. Did you really think I was saying that the Bears have told Fields to sit in a corner? I don’t think so.

I dont know what's normally done, but I'm assuming Fields did not work with the first team because it was more important to get the person who was going to start those reps. Does the second string qb typically get snaps with the first team?

As for the offense, what do you want them to do, install a whole new offense for Fields? I'm sure they worked on some plays for him, and we've seen some of those when he's been put in games.

Your comments have spotlighted the issue. By deciding ahead of time that Dalton would be the starter, they had to create and practice an offense that give the team the best chance of success while Dalton was playing QB. This meant less opportunity for Fields to work with the first team, and when he did, he was necessarily functioning in the Dalton offense, with a few tweaks designed to try to take advantage of Fields' obvious special skills. It would have been so much better for Fields' development (and thus for the Bears both this season and beyond) if the offense had been designed for him since May, and if he had been working with the first team since then.

[nitetrain8603]

All I'm going to say is there is some major meatballing going on in here. "Forget what the stats show, Fields looked great. Receivers need to catch the ball, and the line needs to block, and Nagy needs to give up the playcalling." I wonder if that's the same contingent who thought 3 years ago, Mitch Trubisky was actually good.

I love Fields. My favorite QB in the draft. Yesterday, he looked awful. He squandered chances. You see raw talent there as he's able to drop dimes. With that stated, if you came away from yesterday's game thinking "Yep, he's ready", I don't know what to tell you. doug was spot on with his analysis. He looked pretty bad yesterday.

[GetBuLLish]

I will be interested in seeing Fields play after reps with the First Team... I think it will be a different experience.

I have low expectations to tell you the truth. Lawrence and Wilson had their entire offense built around them from the ground up, an entire training camp at the helm where the offense is constructed. Jones got lots of work with the 1s even before Cam was dumped. Lance didn’t get as much with Jimmy G around, and it probably shows. Fields got zero. A donut. Nada. Remarkable how shut out of the plans and first group Fields was while they steadfastly built this Dalton dink and dunk. How unprepared the coaching staff has gotten him, and the team/plays for him. Now Fields has only one week away from running the scout team, and all that neglect is not going to matter? This is doubtful.

This seems like preemptive excuse making. Is Fields the franchise quarterback this team has been waiting decades for, or is he like so many barely above average QBs that needs everything perfectly put in place around him to be effective?

[fleet]

I will be interested in seeing Fields play after reps with the First Team... I think it will be a different experience.

I have low expectations to tell you the truth. Lawrence and Wilson had their entire offense built around them from the ground up, an entire training camp at the helm where the offense is constructed. Jones got lots of work with the 1s even before Cam was dumped. Lance didn’t get as much with Jimmy G around, and it probably shows. Fields got zero. A donut. Nada. Remarkable how shut out of the plans and first group Fields was while they steadfastly built this Dalton dink and dunk. How unprepared the coaching staff has gotten him, and the team/plays for him. Now Fields has only one week away from running the scout team, and all that neglect is not going to matter? This is doubtful.

This seems like preemptive excuse making. Is Fields the franchise quarterback this team has been waiting decades for, or is he like so many barely above average QBs that needs everything perfectly put in place around him to be effective?

For the most part, any rookie quarterback needs to have been prepared to start to be effective, no matter how talented. That doesn’t mean 1 week. There are outliers, but rare by definition. This is reasonable.

[1985Bear]

When you watch NFL all Sunday, the best plays are rarely blocked up, and a perfect deep ball from a schemed open receiver. The best plays are when the offense breaks down and the QB makes an improved throw. This is what Fields will excel at. I would like to see him each week since we know what Dalton brings - avg. QB play.

BRAINSTORM: Play Dalton and Fields every other week with Nagy calling this week with Fields against the Browns (tough to win anyway you slice it) and Dalton and Lazor focusing for 2 weeks on Detroit (WIN).

I have to think giving a young QB (Or vet) 2 weeks to break down film and prepare for a defense is an advantage.
Give Dalton the Lions game to dink and dunk, then Fields has 2 weeks to get ready for the Raiders.

[Jeffster81]

Let's not forget the Fields, a rookie, enter during the game without much time with the first team this week. IOW, of course his numbers won't look good because he was put in a difficult position. The more time he gets with the first team the better he'll be.

[Dresden]

When you watch NFL all Sunday, the best plays are rarely blocked up, and a perfect deep ball from a schemed open receiver. The best plays are when the offense breaks down and the QB makes an improved throw. This is what Fields will excel at. I would like to see him each week since we know what Dalton brings - avg. QB play.

BRAINSTORM: Play Dalton and Fields every other week with Nagy calling this week with Fields against the Browns (tough to win anyway you slice it) and Dalton and Lazor focusing for 2 weeks on Detroit (WIN).

I have to think giving a young QB (Or vet) 2 weeks to break down film and prepare for a defense is an advantage.
Give Dalton the Lions game to dink and dunk, then Fields has 2 weeks to get ready for the Raiders.

I think it's a misconception that all Dalton can do is dink and dunk. That's the kind of plays Nagy was running for him against the Rams, who have a very good pass rush. He can thrown the ball down the field, too.

[Dresden]

I have low expectations to tell you the truth. Lawrence and Wilson had their entire offense built around them from the ground up, an entire training camp at the helm where the offense is constructed. Jones got lots of work with the 1s even before Cam was dumped. Lance didn’t get as much with Jimmy G around, and it probably shows. Fields got zero. A donut. Nada. Remarkable how shut out of the plans and first group Fields was while they steadfastly built this Dalton dink and dunk. How unprepared the coaching staff has gotten him, and the team/plays for him. Now Fields has only one week away from running the scout team, and all that neglect is not going to matter? This is doubtful.

This seems like preemptive excuse making. Is Fields the franchise quarterback this team has been waiting decades for, or is he like so many barely above average QBs that needs everything perfectly put in place around him to be effective?

For the most part, any rookie quarterback needs to have been prepared to start to be effective, no matter how talented. That doesn’t mean 1 week. There are outliers, but rare by definition. This is reasonable.

If I"m not mistaken, last year Justin Herbert was thrown into the fire at the last minute due to injury, and he had a fantastic year. I believe the Bears playbook is deep enough that there are enough plays in there that will suit Field's style- they don't need to install a whole new offense for him.

[Bulls69]

This is the reason I did not want to start Fields right away folks are thinking Fields is going to be Mahomes right out of the gate the OB position is the hardest position to play in all of sports. This kid looked like a well a rookie which is fine give the kid some time to grow I'm more worried about Nagy than Justin he is so afraid to make decision like yesterday press conference he made a fool out of himself if he is go to go leave Andy in as your starter have some balls Matt.

[1985Bear]

When you watch NFL all Sunday, the best plays are rarely blocked up, and a perfect deep ball from a schemed open receiver. The best plays are when the offense breaks down and the QB makes an improved throw. This is what Fields will excel at. I would like to see him each week since we know what Dalton brings - avg. QB play.

BRAINSTORM: Play Dalton and Fields every other week with Nagy calling this week with Fields against the Browns (tough to win anyway you slice it) and Dalton and Lazor focusing for 2 weeks on Detroit (WIN).

I have to think giving a young QB (Or vet) 2 weeks to break down film and prepare for a defense is an advantage.
Give Dalton the Lions game to dink and dunk, then Fields has 2 weeks to get ready for the Raiders.

I think it's a misconception that all Dalton can do is dink and dunk. That's the kind of plays Nagy was running for him against the Rams, who have a very good pass rush. He can thrown the ball down the field, too.

Detroit Defense from last night showed the 2 high safety look that gave the under looks to GB. That was the dink and dunk reference. I am not a Dalton hater, he is fine. Not great, fine.

[fleet]

This seems like preemptive excuse making. Is Fields the franchise quarterback this team has been waiting decades for, or is he like so many barely above average QBs that needs everything perfectly put in place around him to be effective?

For the most part, any rookie quarterback needs to have been prepared to start to be effective, no matter how talented. That doesn’t mean 1 week. There are outliers, but rare by definition. This is reasonable.

If I"m not mistaken, last year Justin Herbert was thrown into the fire at the last minute due to injury, and he had a fantastic year. I believe the Bears playbook is deep enough that there are enough plays in there that will suit Field's style- they don't need to install a whole new offense for him.

That isn’t what normally happens, and it would be wishful thinking to expect the unexpected for Justin. And I am totally good with that. Ill gladly take 6 or 7 wins this year for Justin rather than try to eek out one or two more wins with Dalton just for the sake of nothing. And I don’t even believe we are generally sacrificing anyway. Every missed game of development on the field for Justin is missed learning opportunity to get him up and running quicker for 2022. Hopefully you’re right, and Nagy will put his preference of system down for the sake of growing specific plays around a true talent ASAP. But again, just different play-calling isn’t the same as installing it piece by piece for a whole training camp learning with the team and the team learning how to play off Justin. 1 practice week (3 days really) during the season of running different plays is a joke.

[transplant]

I'm regularly driven crazy by the media/fan narrative that Nagy needs to tailor his offense to what Fields does best. It seems that if every pass play isn't a rollout or bootleg, then Nagy is guilty of malpractice. Unlike Trubisky, who Nagy had no say in drafting, Nagy drafted Fields to run his offense. I'm sure that there will be some simplification of the offense early, but the goal has to be to have Fields run the offense as it is intended to be run. This will include a lot of pocket passing. Though fans/media seem to believe that passing from the pocket is some sort of limitation, the opposite is true...passing from the pocket opens the whole field while rollouts and bootlegs cut the field in half.

If it's Field's show from here on out, it shouldn't be all about running Nagy's system or all about what's easy for Fields, but the end game is that Fields gets to the point where Fields runs Nagy's offense like Mahomes runs Andy Reid's offense.

[IliketheBullsNBearstoo]

I'm regularly driven crazy by the media/fan narrative that Nagy needs to tailor his offense to what Fields does best. It seems that if every pass play isn't a rollout or bootleg, then Nagy is guilty of malpractice. Unlike Trubisky, who Nagy had no say in drafting, Nagy drafted Fields to run his offense. I'm sure that there will be some simplification of the offense early, but the goal has to be to have Fields run the offense as it is intended to be run. This will include a lot of pocket passing. Though fans/media seem to believe that passing from the pocket is some sort of limitation, the opposite is true...passing from the pocket opens the whole field while rollouts and bootlegs cut the field in half.

If it's Field's show from here on out, it shouldn't be all about running Nagy's system or all about what's easy for Fields, but the end game is that Fields gets to the point where Fields runs Nagy's offense like Mahomes runs Andy Reid's offense.

I agree except I don't think that rollouts and bootlegs necessarily cuts the field in half or I at least don't see it as a negative especially for a young mobile QB. It could actually stretch the field deeper if things work out and the kid will have options, you can check it down to a crossing route, you can go deep if a DB bites on you running and the LB has been taken out of the play, or if the space is there because everyone is being draped by the defense he can just run. Much easier for a young QB to do this than scan an entire field with an average to below average oline as well. Does it make it a limitation? No, but I think its about putting him in the best position to succeed at least at this stage of his career.

I'm not against pocket passing. I'm not arguing pocket passing vs rollouts. I'm for mixing it up, keeping defenses honest. I love the rollout and bootlegs and don't see any negatives in running these plays. Stating that there's limitations to rollouts and bootlegs because they "cut the field in half" is just shortsighted imo. I know you probably aren't saying don't run rollouts and bootlegs but that statement just bothered me so much that I had to type this . I have issues yes.

Anyways I agree with you and I think Fields will be a fine pocket passer. He has a great arm. Just needs to get the timing down. But Nagy, keep mixing it up and take advantage of the physical gifts.

[Dresden]

I'm regularly driven crazy by the media/fan narrative that Nagy needs to tailor his offense to what Fields does best. It seems that if every pass play isn't a rollout or bootleg, then Nagy is guilty of malpractice. Unlike Trubisky, who Nagy had no say in drafting, Nagy drafted Fields to run his offense. I'm sure that there will be some simplification of the offense early, but the goal has to be to have Fields run the offense as it is intended to be run. This will include a lot of pocket passing. Though fans/media seem to believe that passing from the pocket is some sort of limitation, the opposite is true...passing from the pocket opens the whole field while rollouts and bootlegs cut the field in half.

If it's Field's show from here on out, it shouldn't be all about running Nagy's system or all about what's easy for Fields, but the end game is that Fields gets to the point where Fields runs Nagy's offense like Mahomes runs Andy Reid's offense.

I agree with you- Fields should be able to run Nagy's offense as it is. If Fields is so limited as a qb that he needs a special system, then that's a problem. In fact, that's one of the reasons Kapernick never got picked up- coaches felt like they would have to install a completely separate offense anytime he came into the game, and that was just too difficult.

How many qb's in the NFL now run a roll out on a regular basis? Not many that I can think of. Lamar Jackson does a lot of read option type plays. But do you really want to expose Fields to that many hits? I don't think so.

[Susan]

I'm regularly driven crazy by the media/fan narrative that Nagy needs to tailor his offense to what Fields does best. It seems that if every pass play isn't a rollout or bootleg, then Nagy is guilty of malpractice. Unlike Trubisky, who Nagy had no say in drafting, Nagy drafted Fields to run his offense. I'm sure that there will be some simplification of the offense early, but the goal has to be to have Fields run the offense as it is intended to be run. This will include a lot of pocket passing. Though fans/media seem to believe that passing from the pocket is some sort of limitation, the opposite is true...passing from the pocket opens the whole field while rollouts and bootlegs cut the field in half.

If it's Field's show from here on out, it shouldn't be all about running Nagy's system or all about what's easy for Fields, but the end game is that Fields gets to the point where Fields runs Nagy's offense like Mahomes runs Andy Reid's offense.

Watch Mahomes again. There's a ton of backyard football going on there.

[the ultimates]

With some of these comments, I wonder do some of you watch other teams and how their offenses are constructed. Rollouts and bootlegs off-play action give the defense another thing to think about especially with a mobile quarterback. It also helps take the pressure off an offensive line. Both Cleveland and San Francisco use those plays extensively and those teams have very good offensive lines.

The excuses for Nagy and his play calling need to stop. The Bears only dink and dunked because of the Rams. Yet the Giants with a bad line got their quarterback sacked 4 times and still threw the ball over 20 yards. If people are that concerned about Fields knowing the playbook then he should have been starting from training camp as qb1 getting the vast majority of the reps. You can't have it both ways and say he might not know the playbook when he gets very little if any attempt to do that in practice since he's running the scout team.