PurplePTSD: What Kind Of Challenge Will Justin Fields Bring On Monday Night?

Press release from the PurplePTSD:

December 15, 2021

Justin Fields, like most rookies, has had an up and down year for the Chicago Bears. He is talented, but still very raw. What kind of challenge does the rookie pose to the Mike Zimmer defense?

Looking back at this season the Vikings have been tortured by mobile quarterbacks three times. There was the Week 2 Loss against the Cardinals, the Week 6 narrow OT win against the Panthers, and the Week 9 OT loss to the Ravens. All three of those were very winnable games and, quite frankly, all three probably should’ve been wins.

How The Vikings Have Fared this Season

Kyler Murray and the Cardinals

Kyler Murray and the Cardinals’ offense put up 34 points before the Vikings missed the game winning FG to lose 34-33. The mobile QB did most of his damage through the air with 400 yards passing and another 31 yards rushing (including a nice TD run). I don’t think Fields is capable of putting up that much air yardage with the talent around him.

Sam Darnold and the Panthers

Darnold isn’t thought of as a mobile quarterback, but he can be very effective scrambling. The Panthers put up 28 points, led by Darnold’s 207 passing yards and 48 yards rushing. The defense was unable to get off the field late and the Panthers took advantage by tying the game. Fields is more than capable of a game like this, making it a long night.

Lamar Jackson and the Ravens

Lamar ripped up the Vikings defense and held onto the ball for a dominating time of possession. He had 266 yards passing and 120 yards on the ground, helping the Ravens rack up 34 points. Turnovers kept the Vikings in the game since they snagged two INTs. This is a likely scenario for Monday Night.

What is Justin Fields Capable of?

There were a few games where Fields really showed what he can do.

San Francisco – loss

19 for 27 for 175 yards and 10 runs for 103 yards. 2 TDs and 1 INT

Pittsburgh – loss

17 for 29 for 291 yards and 8 runs for 45 yards. 1 TD and 1 INT

Green Bay – loss

18 for 33 for 224 yards and 9 runs for 74 yards. 2 TDs and 2 INTs

What does all that mean for Monday?

As you can see, Fields can put up good numbers against pretty good defensive teams. He is a pain to deal with and it will be difficult to get the Bears offense off the field. However, he is young and inexperienced. He consistently makes mistakes that cost the Bears dearly. I fully expect to see something like the Green Bay effort this week against the Vikings (200+ passing yards, 75-100 rushing yards and 2 TDs and 2 turnovers).

I’ll predict the Bears put up 24-28 points. The Viking offense will need to step up on the road and bring this game home. The Viking playoff hopes may depend on it.

This press release was produced by the PurplePTSD. The views expressed here are the author’s own.