Consider former NFL quarterback Steve Beuerlein all aboard the Justin Fields train. Despite a turbulent Chicago Bears career that saw the team trade him to the Pittsburgh Steelers and select USC QB Caleb Williams No. 1 overall, Beuerlein believes it was the Bears who failed Fields. Not the other way around.
Sharing his thoughts on the “The Bullpen With Adam Bull” podcast, a Cleveland Browns-centric show, Beuerlein staunchly defended Fields.
“I think there were a lot of things working against him in Chicago,” Beuerlein told the show. “Mainly the instability and overall talent around him. Not being given the opportunity to grow in a system with a lot of weapons and a lot of different offensive philosophies that would fit him.”
Like many highly picked quarterbacks, Fields entered a bad team and organization in flux. Things didn’t get much better once he became their pick. As a rookie, the Bears regressed and finished the year 6-11. They had just one true receiver in Darnell Mooney. Head coach Matt Nagy was fired after the season, leading to a coaching staff change and forcing Fields to learn two playbooks and systems in as many years.
Chicago was routinely criticized for not building up enough offensive talent. They added little at wide receiver ahead of the 2022 offseason, running back a similar lineup around Fields. The moves the front office did make, like trading for WR Chase Claypool, were disastrous. The Bears bottomed out to 3-13 in 2022 as Fields struggled to complete 60 percent of his passes with an ugly turnover ratio and high sack rate.
Even in those worst moments, Beuerlein believes Fields showed flashes of his ceiling.
“I saw enough from him, I thought, over the last few years, to believe he’s got the ability to be a top-notch, maybe not an elite NFL quarterback…I think Justin Fields has enough special qualities if you can get that confidence level up and get him in an offensive system that knows how to use him.”
At his best, Fields made electric plays. One of the league’s most dangerous open-field runners with a big arm, things improved in 2023 as the Bears added the proper talent around him. Chiefly, they acquired WR D.J. Moore as the final piece of the deal that sent the 2023 first-overall pick to the Carolina Panthers. Moore responded with a 96-catch, 1,364-yard, eight-touchdown season.
After a slow start, during which Fields was limited by a thumb injury, he and the offense improved down the stretch. They won four of their final six, including a 28-13 upset against the Detroit Lions in Week 14. Fields rushed and threw for a touchdown that day.
The main critique against Fields has been an inability to play like a “traditional” quarterback. Stand in the pocket and deliver. Beuerlein disagrees with the take.
“I think he can do it from the pocket at a higher level than most people do. I think he showed that on several occasions over the last several years.”
One example came during that Lions game. With a 38-yard touchdown to Moore, Fields read the free safety to the closed side spin down as the Lions rotated to a Cover 1 shell. He fired over the top down the left sideline, putting the throw on the money for Moore, who beat the corner.
From 2022 to 2023, Fields improved his completion percentage, TD-to-INT ratio, sack percentage, and Adjusted Net Yards per Passing Attempt. All numbers that could stand more improvement, but it was progress.
While Beuerlein’s praise is more than most, he took things a step further. Not only does he believe in Fields as a quarterback, but the Bears shouldn’t have even drafted Williams. Instead, they should have kept Fields and dealt the No. 1 pick to improve the roster around him.
“My big statement on this whole evolution of what happened with Justin Fields. I thought the Bears made a huge mistake not trading that first pick. I think the Bears, if they trade away that first pick, commit to Fields for one more year…what they would’ve gotten in exchange for that first pick could’ve solidified that football team in a lot of areas. And prepared and set the table to go on a really nice run either this year or next year.”
For a blue-chip prospect like Williams, the Bears could’ve asked for the farm and gotten it. But even Beuerlein admits uncertainty over whether Fields will truly become an elite quarterback, something Williams has the chance to be. That makes his case a tougher sell.
Still, he thinks the Bears loss is the Steelers’ gain.
“I just think it was a mistake they let him go. And they decided to use that first pick. I think Pittsburgh is going to benefit from that long-term.”
Justin Fields is expected to begin the year as Russell Wilson’s backup, potentially playing in specialty packages. A free agent after the season, his future, like that of the Steelers’ quarterback room, is uncertain. Beuerlein seems eager for Pittsburgh to give him a chance.
