Bears aren't doing him any favors, but Justin Fields is not 'the guy'

Unsurprisingly, the Chicago Bears were outclassed in Sunday's 41-10 loss to the Kansas City Chiefs, but as the franchise's longest losing streak continues, it's becoming increasingly apparent that Justin Fields isn't the answer at quarterback. 

That's not to say Fields' 5-23 career record as a starter is all on him. Wins aren't necessarily indicative of a quarterback's performance, and the Bears have failed miserably in surrounding him with the right personnel. Even so, while he has shown flashes, Fields isn't the player Chicago envisioned it was selecting when it traded up to take him 11th overall in the 2021 NFL Draft. 

The lack of development, particularly in the passing game, may spell the end of Fields' time in Chicago. Before Sunday's game, Fox Sports' Jay Glazer reported that the front office isn't sold on him being the franchise quarterback, hinting that the Bears could go in a different direction at the position this offseason. 

Last season was Fields' most impressive from a passing perspective, though it's not much of an accomplishment. He completed 60.4% of his passes for 2,242 yards, 17 touchdowns and 11 interceptions while posting an 85.2 passer rating, the 25th best among quarterbacks. Nevertheless, Fields made up for his difficulties throwing the ball with his dazzling rushing ability as he ran for 1,143 yards, the second-most by a quarterback in NFL history. 

After making improvements around the roster, the Bears hoped Fields would take the next step as a passer. Unfortunately, he has performed worse than expected through three games this season, throwing for 526 yards, three touchdowns and four interceptions with a 58% completion rate and a 21.5 QBR, the lowest among qualified quarterbacks. 

Additionally, Fields isn't running the ball nearly as often this season as he did in 2022 — he has rushed just 24 times — largely due to the coaching staff failing to cater to their players' strengths. Yet, the dual-threat hasn't been as effective when given his opportunities and is rushing for 4.5 yards per carry compared to last season's 7.1. Without his exceptional rushing upside, more and more of Fields' limitations as a passer become evident.

Fields' biggest shortcoming, which has been an issue since being drafted, has been his inability to read NFL defenses, and he hasn't shown signs that he'll improve to an elite level. This causes him to move excessively fast or terribly slowly when going through his progressions, though it's usually the latter, leading to him being sacked. Since the beginning of last season, Fields has been sacked a league-leading 68 times, including 13 in 2023, the second-most in the NFL.