The Chicago Bears traded up in the first round of the 2021 NFL Draft to select Justin Fields from Ohio State University after his surprising drop. It seemed like destiny that he would be the Day One starter for a team that has seen a revolving door at the quarterback position for some time.
However, Bears head coach Matt Nagy issued some comments that are going to have Chicago fans in an outrage.
Chicago Bears HC Matt Nagy told @CollinsworthPFF that there is no possible scenario that Justin Fields is the starting quarterback Week 1.
Nagy: "Andy Dalton is our starter. Justin is our number 2 and we are going to stick with this plan. You just got to trust the plan."
— Daniel Greenberg (@ChiSportUpdates) June 15, 2021
Yikes. The Bears spent $10 million to bring Andy Dalton on board after Mitchell Trubisky dashed to the Buffalo Bills and had him pegged as the starter. Albeit, that was all before the NFL Draft, and the idea of the Bears getting Fields was never realistic given his projections as early as No. 2 overall.
Fields was spectacular with the Buckeyes and easily could have gone to the New York Jets second overall, but the Jets' love for Zach Wilson was too much. Then the San Francisco 49ers took Trey Lance and the Denver Broncos shockingly passed on Justin Fields, causing an uproar across the NFL. Yes, John Elway's decision to pass on Fields could hurt, but it worked out swimmingly for the Bears.
Now Nagy says that Dalton is the guy, putting Fields on the backburner– or so it seems. Perhaps this is a fire to get Fields motivated for camp, or this could very well be a front-office move in hopes of not wasting millions that they spent on Dalton.
Either way, it isn't a good sign, and the drop-off from Dalton to Fields is significant, even with Fields being a rookie. Dalton struggled in Dallas last season after taking over for Dak Prescott, and certainly the Bears would be better overall with Fields at the helm.
So, more confusion in Chicago, but for now it appears that Dalton is the guy.
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