Bears QB Shows Progress in Variety of Ways

It wasn't the last two minutes yet or even the fourth quarter.

Yet Justin Fields showed another sign of growth, an ability to do what an NFL quarterback needs to do to pull out tight games in Sunday's 28-13 win over the Detroit Lions. He did it with his arm, legs, brains and his mouth.

Fields coaxed the Detroit Lions into the kind of dumb play the Bears have been making over the past few years with a heady move on fourth down using his cadence and then hit DJ Moore in stride for the 38-yard touchdown pass to break a 13-13 tie.

"It's Justin," Bears coach Matt Eberflus saiod. "It's the hard count. He did a really good job of hard counting and just a really good job there, and they got them to jump. His use of cadence. That's what it was."

It must have been a really hard count to get the Lions to commit an offsides penalty like this.

The Bears faced fourth-and-13 at the Lions 38 and the wind was blowing out of the southeast so it favored a field goal try. Still, 55 or 56 yards on a 28-degree day is a tough ask of Cairo Santos in a 13-13 game.

So they tried to pull the Lions offsides with everyone up on the line of scrimmage for a long time and Fields hollering out all types of things like Peyton Manning used to do or Aaron Rodgers has done so often over the years. That extra 5 yards on a penalty could make all the difference on a long field goal, even if they couldn't pick up a first down.

No one would actually fall for it, though, would they? After all, it was fourth down and long, so there was no need to be edgy.

Aidan Hutchinson normally needs no help getting to Fields but became the buffoon who jumped the gun this time despite it being obvious what the Bears were doing, and he gave them a free pass. The Ohio State guy got the Michigan guy on that one as Fields threw the 38-yard TD pass on a freebie.

It worked because the Bears have been working on what to do with free plays.

"I mean, it's not a challenge because we practice it multiple times a week," Fields said. "We're used to it. Might have happened like three times this week during practice and walk-throughs."

People are jumping offsides in walk-throughs? Maybe everyone is underselling the intensity of Bears preparations.

"Like I said, we practice it," Fields said. "It happens every week, and the guys are ready for it, and we executed it. It ended up being a big play."

The varnish on this one got taken off a bit when the extra point got blocked, but the game took a total turn after that when Lions QB Jared Goff couldn't get a clean snap from center and T.J. Edwards recovered it to set up an 11-yard TD scramble by Fields on another play with long odds of a conversion. It was third-and-goal and Fields saw no receiver but got outside containment on the right and went straight for the pylonand a TD for a 22-13 lead.

"I mean, when I kind of stepped to the right a little bit," Fields said. "I really just saw green grass. I'm looking for DJ to throw because he was one-on-one in kind of the back corner, but then I looked down and saw green grass right there, so just ran."

Fields didn't have to work as hard on the other Bears touchdown, scored in the first quarter by Moore. It was Moore taking the snap in wildcat with Fields lined up at wide receiver on the left. Moore faked an end-around to Fields and kept it himself. Everyone went after Fields.

"I was tunnel vision on it," Moore said. "I saw everybody hit their right blocks so I knew this was an automatic touchdown."

He strolled 16 yards to the TD for a 7-0 lead.

"I'm so glad Luke (Getsy) called that play," he said.

They had used it against Dallas last year, but he was excited for another reason.

"My job is just to fake the end around and maybe they think we've got a trick play or something coming up, but great blocking. I think DJ just walked in pretty much untouched. Great play, and great blocking up front."

So Fields carried out a good fake but he had another reason for being glad his offensive coordinator dialed up that trick play.

"I was excited because I was tired," he said. "That's the only reason I was excited. I just do my job, fake the little handoff and get a little breather, and then he scored, so that made it even better.

"I mean, yeah, I just treat it like a regular play and just do my job. Could be a big play, could be not. Biggest thing is going out on that play and doing your job, and everybody did their job, and it turned out successful."

A 19-for-33 day with 223 yards and a TD pass to go with 58 yards rushing and a TD run for Fields said he had a successful day as well. He wasn't as convinced.

"There were a few throws I missed, that dagger to DJ (Moore over the middle), still sick about that one late in the game," Fields said about a wide-open throw he air-mailed about 5 feet too high. "There were multiple plays during the game where we could have executed better."

A pass to Darnell Mooney missed the mark, too, but overall the Bears couldn't complain. They learned more about their QB's abilities as a passer, runner, faker and signal caller.

"But end all, we won the game, and still room to get better, so that's just the hope for the future," Fields said.

It's a future growing increasingly brighter by the game.

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