Justin Fields has three years’ worth of Houdini-like escape acts on the Soldier Field turf.
Sunday, in what could be his last game here as a member of the Bears, the quarterback posted one of his best in a 37-17 shellacking of the Falcons. It was part of a masterful performance on the same day the Bears were assured they’d have the No. 1 pick in the draft — and a chance to draft Fields’ replacement at quarterback, should general manager Ryan Poles choose to do so.
Fields left the Lakefront with his team on the upswing, even as the 7-9 Bears would eventually be eliminated from the postseason Sunday night. They’ll play in Green Bay at 3:25 p.m. Sunday; the Packers will have the playoffs on the line.
Inside a swirling snow globe, fans greeted Fields’ success with chants for the Bears to keep him next season.
“It was great,” said Fields, a Georgia native. “Just the atmosphere, the fans, the game. Playing the hometown team where I’m from, beating them. It was good day.”
With a remarkable highlight.
On third-and-eight midway through the third quarter, Fields was blitzed by Falcons edge rusher Bud Dupree. Untouched, Dupree took dead run at Fields and grabbed him with his right arm. Fields ducked underneath it, spun completely around and tried sprinting right.
Defensive lineman David Onyemata had both arms around Fields’ waist and tried to throw the quarterback to the ground. Fields landed on his right foot, stumbled back a yard, planted and sprinted up the right hash — and eventually out of bounds — for a 13-yard gain.
“Just another day at the office for Houdini,” cornerback Jaylon Johnson said.
Said running back Khalil Herbert: “He makes a play where there’s no play — he’s 1 of 1.”
And he could be replaced by another No. 1.
“I’ve said it before I’m going to keep saying it: What makes him not the quarterback?” receiver DJ Moore said. “The Houdini act should’ve [clinched it]… he’s not a running back. He is him... I want him to be the quarterback.
“Now it’s on to the higher-ups. It’s up to them.”
Tight end Cole Kmet called the escape his favorite of Fields, considering the falling snow and slippery field.
“I really believe he’s the only guy that can do that in this league,” Kmet said. “I think that’s what’s so captivating about him.”
And the debate about his future so fascinating. On the day the Panthers lost and handed the Bears the No. 1 overall pick for the second-straight year, Poles had to watch Fields’ magic act and ask himself an increasingly difficult question: Is he absolutely sure he wants to part with Fields?
Caleb Williams, the USC star, is considered a generational quarterback. But he’s not without risk.
Sunday, Fields at least made Poles think twice. He went 20-for-32 for 268 yards, a passing touchdown and a 99.5 passer rating. Fields ran 11 times for 45 yards and another touchdown.
The passing element — Fields has thrown for more than 268 yards only five times in his career — is what separated his’ performance Sunday from the appointment-viewing scrambles of last season.
“That’s what we’ve been searching for — we’ve been searching for that and talking about that during the course of the week — and he’s starting to do that,” coach Matt Eberflus said. “He has the ability to escape the pocket when it breaks down. On those critical situations, third down, two-minute-[drill] ….
“Before it was mostly with his legs. but now you’re starting to see him work out of the pocket and look downfield and make some big strikes. The last couple weeks are a great example of that.
“That’s how you gut a defense.”
Fields’ splash plays have never been the problem, of course — he’s made those ever since his preseason debut at Soldier Field against the Dolphins. The Bears need Fields to be an above-average passer, and he’s yet to show that on a consistent basis.
He looked the part Sunday, though — with snow falling, he marched the Bears to three first-half touchdowns. The Bears’ first possession of the game — which began when the Falcons’ Younghoe Koo left a 50-yard field goal short — began with Fields’ 32-yard deep shot to DJ Moore down the right sideline and ended when we found the receiver in the back left corner of the south end zone for a seven-yard score. Moore finished with 159 receiving yards, his most since Week 5 against the Commanders.
Fields played without concussed receiver Darnell Mooney and with tight end Cole Kmet, who has a knee injury, limited to mostly pass-blocking. It didn’t matter.
Fields made it a point to look around Soldier Field on Sunday, just in case it was his last home game. He tries to do that every week — “I just made a big emphasis on living in the moment,” he said — but knows that his future is an unanswered question.
“I’ll definitely remember this game for the rest of my life, just the atmosphere, the fans, the chants, the snow …” he said. “This one was just special. New Year’s Eve, just the atmosphere.
“It was almost like a movie, to be honest with you.”
It’s up to Poles to decide if Fields gets to make the sequel.
