soulman Posted October 2, 2021 Share Posted October 2, 2021 (edited) BEARSNo need to rush Dalton or Fields? Bears say Week 4 starting QB will be game-time decision Bears quarterbacks Justin Fields, left, and Andy Dalton take part in a pregame session Sept. 19 at Soldier Field. John J. Kim/Chicago Tribune By Brad Biggs | Chicago Tribune Andy Dalton says his left knee is getting better every day and Justin Fields says he’s using Sunday’s disastrous performance as extra motivation. Bears coach Matt Nagy is going to wait until Sunday morning to name a starting quarterback, a new twist for an organization that seemingly has accomplished almost everything imaginable when it comes to ineptitude at the position. To be fair, delaying a decision until just before kickoff against the Detroit Lions isn’t, by itself, a mistake in the latest chapter of the franchise’s bid to replace Sid Luckman. It’s certainly a sign the coaching staff is holding out hope Dalton will be healthy enough to start. Nagy has maintained Dalton will be QB1 when healthy, and the veteran returned to practice Wednesday after sitting out 10 days with a bone bruise in his left knee suffered during the second quarter of the Week 2 victory over the Cincinnati Bengals. Dalton looked a little gimpy during practice Wednesday, but it was evident Friday in the portion of practice open to the media that he has made progress. “I feel really good where I’m at,” said Dalton, who has been arriving early every day at Halas Hall to rehabilitate the injury. Beyond that, he wouldn’t provide any clues about which way Nagy could be leaning. “I’d say it’s going to be a game-time decision with everything as I’m sure you’ve heard from Matt,” Dalton said. “With the injury, you’re just trying to get back as soon as possible, and I feel really good where I’m at. I did some things out there (today) and felt good about where I was. Just going to leave it at that.” Fields was on the injury report all week with a right thumb issue but was a full participant all week. If the Bears choose Dalton on Sunday, it might not be popular with the majority of Bears fans. Nagy isn’t going to win popularity contests in the city right now no matter what moves he makes or what he says. He did say that considering Dalton as a game-time possibility isn’t a reflection of a lack of confidence in Fields, even after the awful showing last week in a 26-6 road loss to the Cleveland Browns. The Bears struggled mightily to protect Fields on Sunday. They won’t face a pass rusher near the caliber of the Browns’ Myles Garrett, who set a franchise record with 4 1/2 of the team’s nine sacks. They also won’t have to contend with a hostile road crowd, which should also help them create time and space for Fields and open holes for the running game. Fields completed 6 of 20 passes for 68 yards against the Browns, and seven of his passes were deflected by defenders. The offense totaled only 47 yards on 42 snaps, making it a historically bad showing even though the Bears trailed by only one touchdown entering the fourth quarter at FirstEnergy Stadium. “When you have a performance like that, times like that, adversity like that, you need those things in life just to slap you in the face and tell you to refocus,” Fields said Friday. “That happening, of course, was a little extra motivation this week on being clean on everything. “Last week, our Wednesday practice wasn’t as clean; I think this week’s Wednesday practice was way better and of course we had a lot more energy. ... It’s given us extra motivation to be better and perform better.” Offensive coordinator Bill Lazor was asked how the coaching staff assessed the game film with Fields. “It’s honest,” Lazor said. “It’s real now. Do you ever hope to be in that exact same situation again? Hopefully not ever in his career. “But you know, it happened. So you just say, ‘OK, faced with these adversities, here’s how I reacted.’ When you tally that many sacks on the game sheet, do all quarterbacks get affected by that? Absolutely. So we know that. Is it fair? Life’s not fair, right? “That was his first regular-season NFL start. Sometimes there’s good, sometimes there’s bad. It feels bad, but if you just take that attitude (and) learn from it, then it’s not bad.” Nagy said the decision process is so involved that he couldn’t say whether the possibility exists that Dalton would be healthy enough to be the backup but not to start. He did rule out Nick Foles as a potential starter, something he mentioned as at least a possibility at the start of the week. Offensive lines, especially struggling ones, can look considerably different at home than they do on the road, and the Lions’ pass defense has been a sieve, with opponents averaging 10.2 yards per attempt and a passer rating of 123.2. That should provide the Bears with some optimism for a passing game that is ranked last in the NFL in passing yards, passing yards per attempt and sacks per attempt, 29th in completion percentage and 31st in passer rating. Notes: Outside linebacker Khalil Mack (sprained foot) returned to practice Friday and is expected to play. He is listed as questionable. Nose tackle Eddie Goldman (knee) was a full participant in practice for the second consecutive day, putting him on track to make his 2021 debut as he was removed from the injury report. Strong safety Tashaun Gipson (hamstring) is doubtful and inside linebacker Joel Iyiegbuniwe (hamstring) has been ruled out. Edited October 2, 2021 by soulman Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
soulman Posted October 2, 2021 Author Share Posted October 2, 2021 If anyone has still been wondering whether or not they've come up with specific scheme and game plan for Fields this should answer your question. They haven't. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Madmike90 Posted October 2, 2021 Share Posted October 2, 2021 This is such a catch 22...I don't want us to bench Fields cause it could impact his confidence even more after last week...but at the same time I don't want to put him in a dangerous working environment with that clown Nagy still around...there is no right answer here. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
soulman Posted October 2, 2021 Author Share Posted October 2, 2021 1 minute ago, Madmike90 said: This is such a catch 22...I don't want us to bench Fields cause it could impact his confidence even more after last week...but at the same time I don't want to put him in a dangerous working environment with that clown Nagy still around...there is no right answer here. It's actually more like there's no answer for using Fields now period. As Dan Orlovsky said they've had over 5 months now to build a scheme around what Justin Fields can do well and then build it out from there. JAX isn't asking Trevor Lawrence to run whatever Nick Foles or Gardner Minshew could run. Urban Meyers is smarter than that. They haven't which tells me Nagy still expects to learn just how much of his scheme and way of doing things Fields can handle. This is nothing more than a redux of what we experienced with Mitch Trubisky. That being the case maybe it is better to let Fields sit until we get rid of Matt Nagy. He should not be the HC who coaches him. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bfan Posted October 2, 2021 Share Posted October 2, 2021 Simply put Nagy is still trying to learn the job of a head coach and playcaller. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Madmike90 Posted October 2, 2021 Share Posted October 2, 2021 43 minutes ago, soulman said: It's actually more like there's no answer for using Fields now period. As Dan Orlovsky said they've had over 5 months now to build a scheme around what Justin Fields can do well and then build it out from there. JAX isn't asking Trevor Lawrence to run whatever Nick Foles or Gardner Minshew could run. Urban Meyers is smarter than that. They haven't which tells me Nagy still expects to learn just how much of his scheme and way of doing things Fields can handle. This is nothing more than a redux of what we experienced with Mitch Trubisky. That being the case maybe it is better to let Fields sit until we get rid of Matt Nagy. He should not be the HC who coaches him. I don't even expect that much from Nagy...I just expect him to keep some people in to protect him when the OL is being whipped then allow him to do more than throw a 6 yard curl...no wonder Allen Robinson wanted out last offseason...this scheme is killing his earning potential since all he is being asked to do is run about 3 routes...the offence as a whole is a joke as is the who "who will call plays?" "Who will start at QB?" Really we need that kind of tactic to try and sneak a win against the Lions? That alone tells you were we are at right now. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
soulman Posted October 2, 2021 Author Share Posted October 2, 2021 (edited) Nagy say, "We know what we're doing. Twitter disagrees. Check link for all responses. https://www.yahoo.com/sports/twitter-mocking-matt-nagy-believing-001840266.html The Irish Bears Show @IrishBearsShow It doesn’t look like it PFF @PFF 5:23 PM · Oct 1, 2021 Edited October 2, 2021 by soulman Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Madmike90 Posted October 2, 2021 Share Posted October 2, 2021 Chicago Bears @BearsPR #Bears injury update: We have downgraded QB Andy Dalton (knee) to Doubtful for Sunday’s game. QB Justin Fields will start vs. the Lions. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
blkwdw13 Posted October 2, 2021 Share Posted October 2, 2021 I guess game time didn’t mean game time after all. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
beardown3231 Posted October 3, 2021 Share Posted October 3, 2021 50 minutes ago, blkwdw13 said: I guess game time didn’t mean game time after all. But hey I bet the Lions had absolutely no idea it would be Fields after he spoke with the media and practiced fully the majority of the week With just 18 hours until kickoff, Dan Campbell is probably crapping himself! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
blkwdw13 Posted October 3, 2021 Share Posted October 3, 2021 3 hours ago, beardown3231 said: But hey I bet the Lions had absolutely no idea it would be Fields after he spoke with the media and practiced fully the majority of the week With just 18 hours until kickoff, Dan Campbell is probably crapping himself! And in typical Bears fashion they will win handily and for one week everything will be all rainbows and butterflies. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WindyCity Posted October 3, 2021 Share Posted October 3, 2021 Think how rattled the Lions must be after Nagy tricked them into preparing for 2 QBs all week… 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Uncle Buck Posted October 3, 2021 Share Posted October 3, 2021 I'd say it's pretty safe to say this guy is going to be your starting QB on Sunday: 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Uncle Buck Posted October 3, 2021 Share Posted October 3, 2021 13 hours ago, soulman said: Nagy say, "We know what we're doing. Twitter disagrees. Check link for all responses. https://www.yahoo.com/sports/twitter-mocking-matt-nagy-believing-001840266.html The Irish Bears Show @IrishBearsShow It doesn’t look like it PFF @PFF 5:23 PM · Oct 1, 2021 If anything was ever "sig-worthy," the above picture sure as heck is. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
blkwdw13 Posted October 3, 2021 Share Posted October 3, 2021 6 hours ago, Uncle Buck said: If anything was ever "sig-worthy," the above picture sure as heck is. It just needs an arrow pointing up in there also, then it would be just about perfect. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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