Chicago Bears quarterback Justin Fields entered his third season in the NFL with high expectations, but the former Ohio State standout has gotten off to somewhat of a rough start.
In Week 1 against the Green Bay Packers, Fields threw for 216 yards with one touchdown against one interception. The Packers sacked Fields four times. This past Sunday against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Fields threw two interceptions and was sacked six times.
The winless Bears face a tough challenge in Week 3 as the team travels to Kansas City for a matchup against the defending Super Bowl champion Chiefs. But two-time NFL MVP Patrick Mahomes offered some advice to Fields during his press conference on Wednesday.
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Patrick Mahomes of the Kansas City Chiefs runs off the field after the first half against the Raiders in Las Vegas on January 7, 2023. (Chris Unger/Getty Images)
“Trust your talent. Trust your instincts,” Mahomes said prior to Fields’ controversial comments about the Bears coaching this week. “He’s here for a reason. He’s made a lot of big plays happen in the NFL and college, wherever he’s been.”
“Just trusting in your instincts and then go out there [and] be the player you’ve always been – just not against us, hopefully,” Mahomes noted with a laugh.
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Mahomes’ words of encouragement came ahead of Fields’ recent remarks about his recent “robotic” playing style. Fields suggested that the Bears coaching staff was at least partly responsible for him overthinking in games.
Justin Fields of the Chicago Bears is shown during OTAs on June 7, 2023, in Lake Forest, Illinois. (Michael Reaves/Getty Images)
“You know, could be coaching, I think,” Fields said. “At the end of the day, they are doing their job when they are giving me what to look at, but at the end of the day, I can’t be thinking about that when the game comes. I prepare myself throughout the week, and then when the game comes, it’s time to play free at that point – thinking less and playing more.”
The 24-year-old quarterback eventually walked back his comments, arguing that his remarks were taken out of context.
“I’m not blaming anything on the coaches. I’m never going to blame anything on the coaches,” he said. “I’m never going to blame anything on my teammates. Whatever happens in a game, I will take all the blame. I don’t care. If it’s a dropped pass, it should have been a pass, put it on me.”
Justin Fields of the Chicago Bears is shown after the game against the Buffalo Bills at Soldier Field, December 24, 2022, in Chicago. (Michael Reaves/Getty Images)
Fields also acknowledged that his performance on the field needs to improve.
“Whenever you hear anything come out of my mouth to where I would blame it on somebody else in this organization, my teammates, never will you hear that. I just want to clear that up. Just know I need to play better. That’s it, point-blank. That’s what it should have been in the first place.”
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On Thursday, Bears general manager Ryan Poles held an impromptu news conference to make it clear that the organization does not view the star quarterback as the type of player who places blame on others.
“No one in our entire building, none of our coaches see Justin as a finger-pointer,” Poles said. “The kid has always taken ownership of anything that has happened on the field. He takes it head-on. He grinds. He works [with all] to find solutions.”
