Given the circumstances and weather conditions, Sunday marked quarterback Justin Fields’ best game. According to Pro Football Focus, he had his best running game, second-best passing performance and second-best overall grade of the season.
But was it enough for the Bears to keep him next year?
Upon further review, here’s a look at Fields’ connections with wide receiver DJ Moore, a near-miss touchdown and the unnecessary hit he took in the Bears’ 37-17 blowout win over the Falcons at Soldier Field:
The first touchdown
It was snowing so hard on third-and-goal from the 7-yard line in the first quarter that Fields had to use center Lucas Patrick’s towel to wipe ice from his facemask while in the huddle. Those conditions didn’t stop Fields from finding receiver Moore in the back left corner of the end zone.
With Fields in the shotgun, receiver Equanimeous St. Brown went in motion to give the Bears three receivers split left, with Moore in the slot. The Falcons were playing what the Bears call triangle coverage, with safety Jessie Bates matched up against Moore. Bates had inside leverage, which allowed Moore to race him toward the back left pylon on a corner route for a touchdown catch.
Fields knew Moore would be open once Falcons cornerback Mike Hughes followed receiver Collin Johnson, who was lined up far left, toward the middle of the field on an under route.
“Great route by DJ,” Fields said.
Lining up Moore in the slot 14 times — his second-most this season — was a clever wrinkle by offensive coordinator Luke Getsy.
“It’s always good to move your players around in formation,” coach Matt Eberflus said Monday. “And I think Luke has done a really good job of that. I think [Moore] can operate anywhere.”
Sunday was exactly what the Bears envisioned when they traded for Moore — an elite receiver making a play on third-and-goal. Moore ranks fifth in Bears history with a career-high 1,300 receiving yards this season. He needs 122 against the Packers to pass Alshon Jeffery for second place.
The Falcons played man coverage against Moore, and the Bears put him in motion to minimize the amount of safety help they were able to give.
They made a point of getting the ball to Moore early. On their first offensive play, Fields threw deep down the right sideline to Moore for a 32-yard completion. Fields showed off his arm strength in brutal conditions, which is essential for any Bears quarterback.
Eberflus credited Getsy with leaning on Moore.
“Just being aggressive,” Eberflus said. “Your opening series, you want to feed your best player. I think that’s important to do. You want to let the other team know he’s here — and you got to cover him.”
Developing Scott
Fields’ best throw Sunday wasn’t even a completion.
With 2:43 left in the third quarter, Fields took a shotgun snap from the Falcons’ 33 and looked left to Moore to try to move the safety in his direction. Rookie receiver Tyler Scott, who was lined up in the right slot, ran a seam route up the hash marks. He beat Hughes, and Fields threw a perfect pass to him in the end zone.
Scott reached out with both hands as he crossed the goal line between the A and R in BEARS, but he couldn’t catch the ball.
The Bears need Scott to develop into a reliable second or third receiver. He had an opportunity Sunday with tight end Cole Kmet limited by a knee injury and receiver Darnell Mooney out with a concussion.
“Tyler is almost there,” Fields said. “He has grown so much throughout the year.”
Fields texted Scott after the Browns game to tell him just that.
“Just great to see how much he’s grown as a receiver, as a player,” he said. “I know it’s tough that we haven’t connected because we almost had a touchdown [Sunday], but it’s coming soon with him.”
What was that?
It’s the ultimate good-problem-to-have: Why was Fields still in the game with the Bears up by 20 and two minutes to play? And why the heck were they passing?
“We needed one first down to kneel it out, and we were just trying to get the first down,” Eberflus said.
The Falcons took a timeout before the Bears faced second-and-nine with 2:02 to play. The Bears lined up in a heavy formation, with eight players at the line of scrimmage, and ran a play-action fake to Roschon Johnson. Fields stood in the pocket
and had plenty of time to throw — six seconds — before rolling right and being hit from his blind side by outside linebacker Lorenzo Carter. Fields fumbled, but the Bears recovered.
More important, he took a brutal hit.
It was a rare mistake in an otherwise outstanding offensive game plan.
“They end up calling timeout before the two-minute warning, so it’s really a free play,” Eberflus said. “You know, it’s a good play. It wasn’t open at the time, so we got to do a better job throwing it away.”
