Justin Fields has been out of action for 4 games because of a thumb injury, but he gets back into the lineup for the Chicago Bears this week against the first-place Detroit Lions.  While the assignment is a challenging one for the 3-7 Bears, Fields is excited to get his chance to return to the field.

The Bears went 2-2 in his absence and rookie quarterback Tyson Bagent had some excellent moments along with several mistakes. There has been mixed response in Chicago because the backup quarterback has had some success and Fields' three years in Chicago have been a struggle. But there is little doubt that Fields is a brilliant athlete and has some top attributes.

Whether it will ever translate into consistent winning is a key question on the table. But for now, Fields is happy to get another chance to play and line up against a division rival.

Fields has heard all the conversation about Bagent and the Bears offense, and he is simply preparing for the start.

“That’s the world we live in nowadays. Everybody wants to cause a stir, cause media attention. Boom, boom, boom; comments, stories. So that’s just what comes with it. But I knew that was going to happen from the get-go, so it came to me as no surprise.”

The Lions currently have a 1 1/2-game in the NFC North and they are coming off a 41-38 victory over the Los Angeles Chargers. Detroit quarterback Jared Goff threw for 333 yards and 2 touchdowns in that game, and Justin Fields is going to have to have a sharp game if the Bears are going to be competitive against their long-time rivals.