The Chicago Bears are riding a lengthy losing streak, as they haven’t won since Week 7 on the road against the New England Patriots on Monday Night Football. Their loss to the Green Bay Packers in Week 13, the sixth straight loss, officially eliminated the Bears from playoff contention as their record dropped to 3-10 on the season.
As Chicago heads into their bye week, its focus for the remainder of the season will be developing the young players on the team. That has been a goal of theirs throughout the season, which was cemented by the fact that they traded away multiple veterans, Robert Quinn and Roquan Smith, ahead of the deadline.
There is a lot of work left to do when it comes to rebuilding this roster, but there should be some optimism when it comes to the improvement of quarterback Justin Fields. Fields, despite the underwhelming supporting cast around him, has found a way to produce and make things work offensively.
Chicago has the least prolific passing offense in the NFL, but they are the most dominant rushing team in the league. Three players have rushed for at least 641 yards, led by Fields with 905.
Despite missing one game because of an injury, Fields is on pace to break the single-season rushing record for a quarterback, which is currently held by Lamar Jackson. He is currently seventh in the NFL in rushing yards and tied for eighth in rushing touchdowns with eight.
While some of those rushing touchdowns have come close to the end zone as Fields is big and strong enough to be the team’s short-yardage back, he also has multiple touchdowns where he has shown his speed and athleticism. On the season, Fields has three rushing touchdowns of 50+ yards.
Just how impressive of a feat is that? According to NFL on CBS, there isn’t a quarterback in the history of the NFL with three 50+ rushing yard touchdowns in their career. Fields has three in the last month, picking one up against the Miami Dolphins, Detroit Lions and Packers this weekend.
What Fields is able to accomplish as a runner is truly remarkable as teams are stacking the box against the Bears and daring them to throw the ball. If Fields can develop in the passing game, which will require the front office to figure out the offensive line and bring in some new weapons, he has a chance to become one of the most dangerous quarterbacks in the NFL.
