LAKE FOREST, Ill. — Chicago Bears quarterback Justin Fields admitted he felt different going into his second NFL offseason given the uncertainty he doesn’t face given his status as the team’s starting quarterback.
“It feels good to just have that mindset,” Fields said. “It’s definitely a different mindset than last year, so I’m ready for the role and I’m ready to lead this offense and this team.”
The bears began Tuesday with a three-day voluntary mini-camp attended by most of the offenses. The only player not present at afternoon practice was quarterback Nick Foles, and general manager Ryan Poles said the team was “working on” trading him at the NFL owners’ meetings last month.
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Fields’ control of offense impressed coach Matt Eberflus, who also noted that the quarterback’s footwork has become cleaner, which will help him get on the ball and get it out quicker.
“I thought he did an excellent job today,” said Eberflus. “He really did it. He was in command of offense, really every game I’ve watched. When you work with 11 guys, there was certainly a mistake here and there from this person or that, but man, he had A really good command today.”
Chicago is nearing the anniversary of moving up nine spots in the first round of the 2021 draft to pick Fields 11th overall. The former Ohio State quarterback trailed Foles and former Bears quarterback Andy Dalton on the depth chart throughout the offseason and training camp, not starting until Week 3 after Dalton injured himself.
“Last year was obviously my rookie year, my first in the league, I didn’t know if I was going to start or not, I didn’t know if I was going to play, so my mindset at the moment is completely different than last year,” he said Fields, “I’m just looking forward to getting started.”
While attending offensive meetings over the past few weeks, Eberflus has noticed leadership qualities in Fields, particularly his confidence when it comes to mastering a new playbook.
“He has a really good confidence in the room,” said Eberflus. “When I’m in the quarterback room, when I’m in the offensive room, [he’s] Calling the games, running them and then what the adjustments are if we can have that for that particular game.
Learning a new offense under offensive coordinator Luke Getsy, who has spent the last three seasons at Green Bay, has been Field’s primary focus since the Bears began their offseason program on April 4. Aside from learning the basics of the program and what will be required of him, Fields has started changing specifics in his game.
The quarterback has worked with Getsy to change his footwork when falling back into the shotgun, noting that he’s fallen right foot forward last season and is now left footed forward, something the Packers did Routine is planning.
“It’s exactly what they do on offense,” Fields said. “It fits better with the routes and stuff like that, so we’re going to do it.”
Though he solidified as a starter ahead of his sophomore season, Fields still sees the challenges that come with having to fast-track a brand new offense over the next five months. Chicago will hold post-draft OTAs next month and will hold a veterans minicamp June 14-16 before taking a pre-training camp hiatus.
“It would be easier if it was the same offense as last year and we could just grow from it,” Fields said. “But kind of just reset since the rookie year with learning that new offense and just picking it up. I think that’s going to be the hardest part with this new coaching regime, just learning this new offense and making sure we’re all getting to the point, down to the last detail.”