Justin Fields Injury

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Bears quarterback Justin Fields left today’s game with what the team termed a rib injury, but he may have injured more than just that.

Jay Glazer reported on FOX that Fields is currently undergoing examinations to determine not only the extent of his rib injury, but also whether he has damaged his spleen.

Bears coach Matt Nagy said after the game that he doesn’t know how serious Fields’ injury is, but it sounds like something that would be hard to come back from on a short week. The Bears are at Detroit on Thanksgiving.

If Fields can’t go, the Bears would again turn to Andy Dalton as the
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That is exactly where he had his fingers placed when he was walking off. And after looking at the replay I didn't see any contact to his ribs. I think he stretched out strained something.
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just sit the kid for the last few weeks, blow it up
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GSH wrote: Mon Nov 22, 2021 12:49 am just sit the kid for the last few weeks, blow it up
I've been advocating to play the kid. This injury isn't impacting my opinion at all... but I agree they should just revert back to platooning him in every once in a while and let Dalton start.

The second half of the season isn't going to look any different than the first. The only time the Bear offense can move the ball is when it HAS to in come-from-behind mode. Why? That's why Nagy's influence on the strategy is minimized.

I thought Lazor was helping but Nagy's hands are still clearly ALL OVER the game planning. How the EFF can Mooney get 16 targets and the group of Fields, Monty, Herbert and Grant get only 20 carries... in a low scoring game! On a beautiful Chicago fall home Sunday? And only 3 looks to the tight ends? Where the eff was Kmet? James? Horsted? I absolutely HATE Nagy for not playing Adams or Dazz. And for ignoring the success with the TEs up the seam with nothing yesterday (fooled 'em!). I'm sick of the ball going off the fingertips of mini-Mooney again & again & again.

I hate this offense so much I don't even want my guy (JF1) to play in it any more. I'll be wearing his jersey at the game on Thursday - but I don't even care if he doesn't play. I think this offense is embarrassing to him. I know it is to me!
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My first thought was torn cartilage in his ribcage. That's not a fun injury.

Even if he gets healthy enough to play again, I'm pretty sure it's going to be Dalton from here on out.
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wab wrote: Mon Nov 22, 2021 11:24 am My first thought was torn cartilage in his ribcage. That's not a fun injury.

Even if he gets healthy enough to play again, I'm pretty sure it's going to be Dalton from here on out.
I didn't watch the game. If you are correct in the injury diagnosis he is done for the year. I dont know much about rib injuries, but the healing time frame is 6-12 weeks according to the google.
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IE wrote: Mon Nov 22, 2021 9:55 am I thought Lazor was helping but Nagy's hands are still clearly ALL OVER the game planning. How the EFF can Mooney get 16 targets and the group of Fields, Monty, Herbert and Grant get only 20 carries... in a low scoring game! On a beautiful Chicago fall home Sunday? And only 3 looks to the tight ends? Where the eff was Kmet? James? Horsted? I absolutely HATE Nagy for not playing Adams or Dazz. And for ignoring the success with the TEs up the seam with nothing yesterday (fooled 'em!). I'm sick of the ball going off the fingertips of mini-Mooney again & again & again.

I hate this offense so much I don't even want my guy (JF1) to play in it any more. I'll be wearing his jersey at the game on Thursday - but I don't even care if he doesn't play. I think this offense is embarrassing to him. I know it is to me!
Yeah, it was very evident that Nagy's fingerprints were all over the strategy against the Ravens. With Fields in there is was 'run a bit and take deep shots'. No passes to the TEs or RBs at all. I can't believe Fields would only throw to WRs without input from coaches. When Dalton came in then things changed a little and the Mooney TD showed the folly of just throwing deep. Dalton being a veteran though changed the plays several times, something I doubt Fields is given the authority to even do.

I see little point in taking any risks with Fields at all. If he's banged up then let him heal. There's nothing to really play for anymore, just an outside chance of scraping into that last playoff spot, and his confidence is not going to increase by continuing in this inept offense, it can only be damaged. His long term health far outweighs gaining a little more experience whilst getting hit a lot.
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wab wrote: Mon Nov 22, 2021 11:24 am My first thought was torn cartilage in his ribcage. That's not a fun injury.

Even if he gets healthy enough to play again, I'm pretty sure it's going to be Dalton from here on out.
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At a certain point you get hit too much - it is a bit of a skill to avoid it
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I don't remember seeing him take a hit to the ribs, did it happen when he fell to the ground?
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I think it was more the stretch combined with the twist.
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IE wrote: Mon Nov 22, 2021 9:55 am
GSH wrote: Mon Nov 22, 2021 12:49 am just sit the kid for the last few weeks, blow it up
I've been advocating to play the kid. This injury isn't impacting my opinion at all... but I agree they should just revert back to platooning him in every once in a while and let Dalton start.

The second half of the season isn't going to look any different than the first. The only time the Bear offense can move the ball is when it HAS to in come-from-behind mode. Why? That's why Nagy's influence on the strategy is minimized.

I thought Lazor was helping but Nagy's hands are still clearly ALL OVER the game planning. How the EFF can Mooney get 16 targets and the group of Fields, Monty, Herbert and Grant get only 20 carries... in a low scoring game! On a beautiful Chicago fall home Sunday? And only 3 looks to the tight ends? Where the eff was Kmet? James? Horsted? I absolutely HATE Nagy for not playing Adams or Dazz. And for ignoring the success with the TEs up the seam with nothing yesterday (fooled 'em!). I'm sick of the ball going off the fingertips of mini-Mooney again & again & again.

I hate this offense so much I don't even want my guy (JF1) to play in it any more. I'll be wearing his jersey at the game on Thursday - but I don't even care if he doesn't play. I think this offense is embarrassing to him. I know it is to me!
I completely agree that this is nowhere close to Lazor's offense. And it hasn't been since 8 days after the last time Nagy said he was giving the play calling to Lazor. I was also screaming for utilizing the TEs more!

I don't think JF1's injury occurred on his last play. I think he was trying to play through something that happened earlier. How many times in the game did was see him get up slowly after a hit?

I am on the far more conservative end of the spectrum from many, supporting the concept that learning the offense completely before sending him out to play in real games. The reasoning being that many potentially successful players can be damaged or ruined by being thrown into the fire with what I would term insufficient preparation. My belief is that playing NFL QB is the most difficult job in sports. That is not to say that playing doesn't also provide tremendous learning. It's just that having a clear understanding of the details of each play concept before trying to execute it under the wildly variant stress of attack by different defensive schemes and players. In light of that, I'm certainly in favor of letting him sit and assimilate the book concepts, particularly since his playing style seems to be putting himself in dangerous circumstances at this time.
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I just don't see any actual data or sufficient examples of players being damaged or ruined by playing. I think that's a meme but doesn't have anything behind it other than fear.

We're saying different things. I'm saying don't play him because Nagy is undermining him - not because he doesn't know the offense OR because the game is too fast for him. Or because of potential injury. I'm just unfortunately recognizing that Nagy is going down swinging: "This is MY offense and any QB out there is running MY offense - and that is that." So I don't necessarily think there's much upside to having JF1 "learn to play in Nagy's offense" - a disjointed and ineffective offense that completely sucks and will persist for at most 8 more games. I DO still want to see him out there in packages that are friendly to his strengths... things that are likely to be in the next Bear offense.

This injury is not a justification or vindication of the "don't play the rookie" position. He's not even injured, really. What is happening is Nagy is taking the opportunity to play the QB he thinks gives him a better chance of keeping his job. Because Nagy still doesn't recognize that he himself is the problem.
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Regardless of Nagy's thoughts on the best QB to run his offense, it just makes sense to hold out Fields and give him the extra days to heal. Which of course, means he'll be the starter.
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Grizzled wrote: Tue Nov 23, 2021 3:56 pm Regardless of Nagy's thoughts on the best QB to run his offense, it just makes sense to hold out Fields and give him the extra days to heal. Which of course, means he'll be the starter.

It would be unbelievably, grossly negligent if this decision wasn't coming from the top (not Nagy) right now.


Which, of course, isn't to say it is.
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Bears quarterback Justin Fields suffered cracked ribs, still likely to return shortly

Chicago Bears rookie first-rounder Justin Fields suffered multiple cracked ribs in Sunday's Week 11 loss to the Baltimore Ravens, NFL Network Insider Ian Rapoport reported Thursday morning.

Initial tests after he exited the game leaned to Fields having sustained bruised ribs, but after clean X-ray and CT scans, an MRI showed the additional issues, Rapoport added. They are small fractures and not viewed as major, so Fields should return shortly, Rapoport reported.

Full article: https://www.nfl.com/news/bears-quarterb ... return-sho
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HisRoyalSweetness wrote: Thu Nov 25, 2021 8:57 am
Bears quarterback Justin Fields suffered cracked ribs, still likely to return shortly

Chicago Bears rookie first-rounder Justin Fields suffered multiple cracked ribs in Sunday's Week 11 loss to the Baltimore Ravens, NFL Network Insider Ian Rapoport reported Thursday morning.

Initial tests after he exited the game leaned to Fields having sustained bruised ribs, but after clean X-ray and CT scans, an MRI showed the additional issues, Rapoport added. They are small fractures and not viewed as major, so Fields should return shortly, Rapoport reported.

Full article: https://www.nfl.com/news/bears-quarterb ... return-sho

This is another situation where George needs to put the hammer down and say "NO".

You don't put him behind a bad line in a bad offense on a bad team that isn't going anywhere and risk a broken rib puncturing a lung or other organ.
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Moriarty wrote: Thu Nov 25, 2021 10:25 am
HisRoyalSweetness wrote: Thu Nov 25, 2021 8:57 am

This is another situation where George needs to put the hammer down and say "NO".

You don't put him behind a bad line in a bad offense on a bad team that isn't going anywhere and risk a broken rib puncturing a lung or other organ.
Wasn't George the one who demanded he be put out there behind the bad OL to begin with?

Anyway, here's a recent analysis/ranking of our OL from PFF.
After watching some other teams, I concur we're far from the worst out there.
22. CHICAGO BEARS (UP 9)

Best-graded: T Jason Peters | 76.7

Worst-graded: C Sam Mustipher | 51.3

You could easily have been led into thinking that the Bears have the worst offensive line in the league based on some of the results and the hysteria surrounding the group over the first half of the season. The truth is far from it.

Their line isn’t good, but it is perfectly manageable, and the best player they have plays the most important position. Jason Peters, breathing down the neck of his 40th birthday, has allowed just 17 total pressures in nine games and has PFF grades of at least 70.0 in both run blocking and pass protection. The line certainly has some issues, but it’s an average to below-average unit that has been looking far worse due to the rest of the offense.
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Burl wrote: Thu Nov 25, 2021 11:29 am
Moriarty wrote: Thu Nov 25, 2021 10:25 am


This is another situation where George needs to put the hammer down and say "NO".

You don't put him behind a bad line in a bad offense on a bad team that isn't going anywhere and risk a broken rib puncturing a lung or other organ.
Wasn't George the one who demanded he be put out there behind the bad OL to begin with?
Sure, but Fields wasn't injured and the team hadn't conclusively proven they aren't a contender at that point.
You would hope he has the brains to understand the situation is different now.

Burl wrote: Thu Nov 25, 2021 11:29 am
Anyway, here's a recent analysis/ranking of our OL from PFF.
After watching some other teams, I concur we're far from the worst out there.
22. CHICAGO BEARS (UP 9)

Best-graded: T Jason Peters | 76.7

Worst-graded: C Sam Mustipher | 51.3

You could easily have been led into thinking that the Bears have the worst offensive line in the league based on some of the results and the hysteria surrounding the group over the first half of the season. The truth is far from it.

Their line isn’t good, but it is perfectly manageable, and the best player they have plays the most important position. Jason Peters, breathing down the neck of his 40th birthday, has allowed just 17 total pressures in nine games and has PFF grades of at least 70.0 in both run blocking and pass protection. The line certainly has some issues, but it’s an average to below-average unit that has been looking far worse due to the rest of the offense.

They're certainly better than they were at the start of the year or around game 8-10ish of last year. But they're still also definitely below average (and Fields is below average at not taking sacks - and you have to think his ability to spin/turn/run away from pressure only goes down with a rib injury).
Last edited by Moriarty on Thu Nov 25, 2021 5:01 pm, edited 1 time in total.
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Bears quarterback Justin Fields to practice Wednesday

Bears quarterback Justin Fields will practice Wednesday, coach Matt Nagy said.

And while he will be the Bears’ starter whenever he’s deemed healthy, that moment hasn’t happened yet: veteran Andy Dalton will get the snaps with the starters during Wednesday’s practice, Bears coach Matt Nagy said.

Nagy wouldn’t say whether Fields would be a full participant or limited Wednesday. He said Fields “has done a great job staying mentally focused” in the last 10 days.

Full article: https://chicago.suntimes.com/bears/2021 ... ndy-dalton
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Another article covering what Nagy had to say about Fields at his presser:

https://chicago.suntimes.com/bears/2021 ... -cardinals
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I think the time has come to declare the season over for Justin Fields ... there is absolutely nothing to gain by him taking another snap this season as the Bears aren't going anywhere post season wise so what would be the point of having Fields rush to return to action? the risk of additional injury to an already injured and not quite healed young QB is not worth him seeing action to close out the year in meaningless games

I think we have seen enough to know Fields is the real deal so protecting him and nurturing him so he can be back healthy at the very start of training camp as QB1 next year should be the Bears priority
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Boris13c wrote: Sun Dec 05, 2021 10:32 am I think the time has come to declare the season over for Justin Fields ... there is absolutely nothing to gain by him taking another snap this season as the Bears aren't going anywhere post season wise so what would be the point of having Fields rush to return to action? the risk of additional injury to an already injured and not quite healed young QB is not worth him seeing action to close out the year in meaningless games

I think we have seen enough to know Fields is the real deal so protecting him and nurturing him so he can be back healthy at the very start of training camp as QB1 next year should be the Bears priority
I think he would benefit tremendously from the extra game time/live reps. I don't want to rush him back before he's healthy, but once he's healthy he benefits far more from playing than sitting. I believe if we were in the hunt right now he's be playing this week - I think he's healthy enough to play - but we are taking the cautious approach with his health which is smart. I suspect he's back for GB.
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dplank wrote: Sun Dec 05, 2021 11:11 am
Boris13c wrote: Sun Dec 05, 2021 10:32 am I think the time has come to declare the season over for Justin Fields ... there is absolutely nothing to gain by him taking another snap this season as the Bears aren't going anywhere post season wise so what would be the point of having Fields rush to return to action? the risk of additional injury to an already injured and not quite healed young QB is not worth him seeing action to close out the year in meaningless games

I think we have seen enough to know Fields is the real deal so protecting him and nurturing him so he can be back healthy at the very start of training camp as QB1 next year should be the Bears priority
I think he would benefit tremendously from the extra game time/live reps. I don't want to rush him back before he's healthy, but once he's healthy he benefits far more from playing than sitting. I believe if we were in the hunt right now he's be playing this week - I think he's healthy enough to play - but we are taking the cautious approach with his health which is smart. I suspect he's back for GB.
I sort of agree with you both. I agree with you, Boris, that Nagy's offense and tactics are just not really teaching JF1 anything at all. So from a "learning an NFL offense" standpoint he'll be starting from scratch in the spring. But I also agree with Plank that despite the horrible offense it will benefit JF1 to get those game speed snaps and experience live NFL defenses - that is all about slowing the game for him and having him learn some tough lessons when it doesn't matter (the rest of this season). He can learn to protect the ball better when he's under pressure (not fumbling), scrambling, and throwing into NFL windows. Get him used to throwing NFL touchdowns. It is super valuable experience and if he can get another 5-6 starts under his belt it will only help him.

He's not going to get seriously hurt. We can't be afraid to play players because they might get hurt - we just can't be like that.
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"Get him used to throwing NFL touchdowns."

Nice one IE

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IE wrote: Sun Dec 05, 2021 11:38 am
dplank wrote: Sun Dec 05, 2021 11:11 am

I think he would benefit tremendously from the extra game time/live reps. I don't want to rush him back before he's healthy, but once he's healthy he benefits far more from playing than sitting. I believe if we were in the hunt right now he's be playing this week - I think he's healthy enough to play - but we are taking the cautious approach with his health which is smart. I suspect he's back for GB.
I sort of agree with you both. I agree with you, Boris, that Nagy's offense and tactics are just not really teaching JF1 anything at all. So from a "learning an NFL offense" standpoint he'll be starting from scratch in the spring. But I also agree with Plank that despite the horrible offense it will benefit JF1 to get those game speed snaps and experience live NFL defenses - that is all about slowing the game for him and having him learn some tough lessons when it doesn't matter (the rest of this season). He can learn to protect the ball better when he's under pressure (not fumbling), scrambling, and throwing into NFL windows. Get him used to throwing NFL touchdowns. It is super valuable experience and if he can get another 5-6 starts under his belt it will only help him.

He's not going to get seriously hurt. We can't be afraid to play players because they might get hurt - we just can't be like that.
Well, after watching Dalton throw 4 picks and take 3 sacks, with 2 more INT's dropped by the defense - it does remind one that the turnover problem that we saw with Fields isn't entirely on him. Some of it is, some of it isn't. We saw a lot of tipped passes get picked with Fields, saw 2 today with Dalton. We've seen our own fans label Fields as a guy who's slow to read and takes too many sacks, but "quick read" Dalton took 3 today. For truth, Fields sack totals the last 7 weeks are 1,2,4,4,4,3,2. That's avg 2.85 per game. It all looks eerily similar to me. And it all looks eerily similar to our Trubisky time as well. Foles, a "read and get the ball out" statue? Same deal, sacks, INT's, general offensive suckage.

So yea, I want him to get reps as it's the best way to learn and improve. But it's also clear to me that no QB is going to succeed here until Nagy is fired. It's the same thing, whether it's Mitch, Foles, Daniel, Fields, or Dalton - it's the same story. So for me that only thing I think about now is player development for 2022, and that's why I want Fields out there getting live reps. Jenkins also. And while we're at it, I'd like to see Daniels get snaps at C - Mustipher was brutal out there again. I just don't see a ton of risk when Fields is getting sacked at that rate. There's always risk when you step onto the field, but like you say we can't be afraid to play players because they might get hurt - that is loser mentality.
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dplank wrote: Sun Dec 05, 2021 5:27 pm
IE wrote: Sun Dec 05, 2021 11:38 am

I sort of agree with you both. I agree with you, Boris, that Nagy's offense and tactics are just not really teaching JF1 anything at all. So from a "learning an NFL offense" standpoint he'll be starting from scratch in the spring. But I also agree with Plank that despite the horrible offense it will benefit JF1 to get those game speed snaps and experience live NFL defenses - that is all about slowing the game for him and having him learn some tough lessons when it doesn't matter (the rest of this season). He can learn to protect the ball better when he's under pressure (not fumbling), scrambling, and throwing into NFL windows. Get him used to throwing NFL touchdowns. It is super valuable experience and if he can get another 5-6 starts under his belt it will only help him.

He's not going to get seriously hurt. We can't be afraid to play players because they might get hurt - we just can't be like that.
Well, after watching Dalton throw 4 picks and take 3 sacks, with 2 more INT's dropped by the defense - it does remind one that the turnover problem that we saw with Fields isn't entirely on him. Some of it is, some of it isn't. We saw a lot of tipped passes get picked with Fields, saw 2 today with Dalton. We've seen our own fans label Fields as a guy who's slow to read and takes too many sacks, but "quick read" Dalton took 3 today. For truth, Fields sack totals the last 7 weeks are 1,2,4,4,4,3,2. That's avg 2.85 per game. It all looks eerily similar to me. And it all looks eerily similar to our Trubisky time as well. Foles, a "read and get the ball out" statue? Same deal, sacks, INT's, general offensive suckage.

So yea, I want him to get reps as it's the best way to learn and improve. But it's also clear to me that no QB is going to succeed here until Nagy is fired. It's the same thing, whether it's Mitch, Foles, Daniel, Fields, or Dalton - it's the same story. So for me that only thing I think about now is player development for 2022, and that's why I want Fields out there getting live reps. Jenkins also. And while we're at it, I'd like to see Daniels get snaps at C - Mustipher was brutal out there again. I just don't see a ton of risk when Fields is getting sacked at that rate. There's always risk when you step onto the field, but like you say we can't be afraid to play players because they might get hurt - that is loser mentality.
Agreed. Play JF1 for no other reason than to let him get reps against an NFL defense - whether or not he's in an NFL offense. We can't include his Cleveland game in his sack totals and then declare it too risky. That was an outlier and completely Nagy-related. JF1's sack rate right now is where it is going to be most of his career. That's just how it is for a QB who is going to deliberately take/make more time because of his legs.

Jenkins needs it too and my only concern on him is whether he's physically ready to start after his back. As soon as he is, he should.
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I honestly don't know if I want Fields to play another down this season.

Yes it helps his development. I don't argue the merits of that whole discussion.

But for what?

The season is fucked.
The team is fucked.
The head coach is fucked.

So have Fields go out there and do what? For what reason? IDK.
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I think I’d have Fields in there when he’s healthy because most of the players will still be here next season and he needs to develop an understanding with them.
Mooney, Kmet, Herbert, Monty - they’ll all be on the offense next season, that’s as close to guaranteed as it gets.
He needs the gamecraft that only comes from facing NFL defenses. I’m talking timing and decision making. Extending plays all come from facing elite defenses.

He has a free hit, the season is done, there are 5 games to go. There is nothing to lose but a lot to learn.
(26/09/2023) Winner of the inaugural

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