With his future as the Bears’ franchise quarterback in doubt heading into the last five games of the season, Justin Fields turned philosophical when asked Wednesday if he had heard outside questions about what his team could do at quarterback next year.
“Life isn’t fair, so I’m focused on what I can control; the rest is in God’s hands,” Fields said. “You just put everything in God’s hands; you know it’s going to turn out good for you. If I’m here next year [or] if I’m not, football doesn’t define who I am as a person. My happiness will still be in the same place, will still be in God and really just football-wise, life stuff in general.
“I think my faith in God . . . my hope in God is just so much more than anything that can be thrown at me on this earth. That’s why I don’t really stress over stuff like that, over stuff I can’t control. I know that God’s got me, and I’m gonna be good. I’m very blessed in the position I am in, and I think a million people would love to be in the position I’m in right now. [I’m] not taking that for granted and just taking each and every moment I have, every day up here, to the fullest.”
Fields has career highs in passer rating (92.3) and passing yards per game (198.4) in eight starts this season but has been inconsistently productive. The Bears currently own the No. 1 overall pick in the 2024 draft, via the trade with the 1-11 Panthers for the No. 1 overall pick in 2023, so USC’s Caleb Williams and North Carolina’s Drake Maye could be options.
But by now, Fields is used to the scrutiny and the criticism that come with the job and the speculation about his future and the Bears having other options for 2024.
“Shoot, since I got to Chicago, y’all [media] don’t hold back,” Fields said. “I hear from y’all. I hear from fans. I don’t take any of it personal because I know everybody’s entitled to their opinions on certain things. I try not to take anything personal and just go about it that way.”
He knows he has a future in the NFL, whether it’s with the Bears or another team.
“I’ve had [times] in my life where I wanted things to happen, and it didn’t go that way, and it ended up going another way, and it worked out better than I could have imagined,” Fields said. “That’s why I don’t stress about stuff that happened. [I’m] just controlling what I can control and being the best person I can be. Striving to be the best player I can be.”
Fields still has five games to control the 2024 quarterback narrative, beginning with the matchup Sunday against the Lions at Soldier Field.
“I’m really just trying to be consistent; I think that’s the biggest thing,” Fields said. “You can play good one game, play bad the other. So I think me just trying to be consistent and trying to be better than I was yesterday. Just trying to continually improve as a person and a player and better myself every day.”
After playing mostly a dink-and-dunk game in a 12-10 victory over the Vikings on Nov. 27 at U.S. Bank Stadium, Fields is looking forward to opening things up against the Lions. Fields had 273 total yards against them in a 31-26 loss at Ford Field on Nov. 19 — 169 passing and 104 rushing.
“They’re gonna change some stuff up on us, and we’ve got to be prepared for that,” Fields said. “The biggest thing is sticking to our rules . . . no matter what they bring us. If we take care of everything up front and run the ball like we’re supposed to, everything will take care of itself.”
