LAKE FOREST, Ill, — The 2023 offseason started with the Chicago Bears having high hopes for quarterback Justin Fields. The best-case scenario for the franchise was that Fields would take the next step in his development and force the Bears to pick up the fifth-year option and commit to him at the position. With two first-round picks, Chicago could surround him with even more weapons in what would hopefully be a playoff team for years to come.
It ended with the Bears facing a big decision this offseason on whether or not they should move on from Fields and draft a quarterback at No. 1 or commit to him and try to build around him even more with those two first-round picks.
Sandwiched in between all of that was the signing and then release of PJ Walker, signing Tyson Bagent as an undrafted free agent as he ended up starting a few games, and a lot of ups and downs at this position this season. It was another year in which we focused on the position in hopes of finally finding the franchise guy.
As we go into this offseason, this position is still in focus as the team has a big decision to make But before we get into that, it’s time for our position reviews for the Bears. With 2023 officially wrapped up for Chicago, it’s time to analyze how the quarterback position performed.
Stats:
Justin Fields: 227 of 370 attempts, 61.4 percent, 2,562 yards, 16 touchdowns, 9 interceptions. (13 games started)
Tyson Bagent: 94 of 143 attempts, 65.7 percent, 859 yards, 3 touchdowns, 6 interceptions. (4 games started)
Nathan Peterman: Did not record a stat in 2 appearances
High points
The start of the 2023 season didn’t go as planned for the Bears at the quarterback position. Out of the gate, Fields and the offense struggled in the first three games of the season before finding something against Denver and Washington in weeks 4 and 5.
Those two games were by far Fields’ best games of the year, throwing for 335 yards against Denver and then 282 against Washington. He threw for 4 touchdowns in each of those games and seemed to find his groove. There was hope that Fields was turning it around and could be the franchise guy. But another injury halted those plans.
After Fields got hurt in Week 7, he missed a few games before making his return in Week 11.
Chicago went 4-3 in the final seven games under Fields. In those seven games, Fields averaged 194 passing yards a game, threw 5 touchdowns and 3 interceptions. Those aren’t great numbers by any means but it was a little improvement from what we’ve seen in the past.
With Fields out during the four weeks, the Tar Heels were able to potentially find their backup of the future. Tyson Bagent came in for Fields and provided a little spark while having some rough moments along the way. By no means was Bagent a threat to take Fields job, but the undrafted quarterback got his chance and took full advantage. There’s still a lot of room to grow but he’s now an option as a backup next season for the Bears which has value.
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Low point
The overall play of the quarterback position for the Bears was a disappointment again. With such high expectations going into the year by adding DJ Moore, drafting a right tackle to protect Justin Fields and hopefully a second-year jump under Luke Getsy, we are pretty much back to where we started. And now there are big questions leading into the 2024 offseason.
While Fields did show some improvement at times, the overall consistency just wasn’t there. That’s been a problem in his three years so far — lots of flashes but overall no consistency with the play. Now, that isn’t all on Fields as the team has issues with injuries, lack of production outside of DJ Moore, and questionable playcalling, but it’s hard to say for certain that Fields elevated the play of his teammates as well.
As Chicago flirted with the No. 1 pick all year before finally landing it thanks to Carolina, it was clear that Fields had to leave no doubt and make this a tough decision on general manager Ryan Poles. It still might be a tough decision but Fields didn’t leave no doubt and instead the Bears now have to make that decision.
For a fanbase that was hoping Fields would prove he’s the guy and take a step forward in year three, he didn’t do that and that’s the biggest low point with the position.
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Grade and Outlook of position
Grade: C
Outlook
The future of the position for the Bears is still a little unclear as we sit here in January. Chicago holds the No. 1 overall pick in a draft class that features Caleb Williams and Drake Maye, while Heisman Trophy winner Jayden Daniels is ascending up draft boards as well. To pass on a quarterback from this class would require you to have no doubt about Fields or find a trade package that you cannot turn down.
But sitting here writing this, it’s hard imagining the Bears passing up on one of these prospects after trading No. 1 overall last year. The quarterback position is the most important position in football and arguably all of sports. Getting it right is the most important thing and Poles is probably going to have to take a swing at it with Williams sitting there as one of the best prospects we’ve seen in a few years now.
While Fields still has a year on his contract and the Bears can pickup the fifth year option, it feels like that’s a longshot at this point. He has shown the ability to be a solid quarterback and a dynamic athlete, but the pocket passing needs to improve and it didn’t last season. The other option the Bears have is to stick with Fields and trade the pick to acquire more assets and build around him, much like they did last season.
There’s a long way to go for evaluations including the scouting combine, pro days, meetings and more ahead of April’s draft but the talk of the offseason will be with the quarterback position for the Bears.
