adam

Absolutely, it would be nice to close out the last home game with a win and momentum going into the GB game.

In a macro view, he probably stays as he went from a 3-win to at least a 6-win team. On a micro level, I could see them moving on. So it will depend on if Poles views Flus as a success or a failure.

The TTT stat doesn't take into account scrambles with passes. So if Fields/Williams elude rushers, rollout, then throw it, that makes the time go up considerably. Russell Wilson used to have a super high TTT when he was doing the houdini act in the backfield, but since he would still throw it after 8 seconds, it would make like his TTT was really high, but in reality his normal drop backs were in the normal range. What the holding the ball looks like is the patting of the ball or the hitch then throw making the throw late in the progression or window. Fields does that a lot. Williams does it some but not at the same rate as Fields does.

More love: Kmet was the highest graded TE in Week 16 (PFF) and only played a half. Kmet is the 7th highest graded TE for the year (behind only Kittle, Kelce, Hockenson, McBride, Andrews, LaPorta). Kmet is tied for 7th in First Downs with 35. Kmet is tied for the lead with only 1 drop and 0 fumbles lost on the season.

I've seen an interesting thought, highly unlikely, but just say the Chargers make Justin Herbert available in a trade for the #1 pick. If you are the Bears, are you better with Herbert, Williams + Cap Space, or Fields + Pick 1 in 2024 (MHJ)?

The one thing that is notable about Williams is he is pretty decisive and has a quick drop back. That makes the timing routes look so much smoother. Then he still has the ridiculous passes like these: One concern of mine is him holding the ball with one hand when he is in the pocket, that has led to some fumbles and will need to be cleaned up.

ATL is 25th overall in DVOA, 24th on offense, 19th on defense. This is a game the Bears should win.

The Bears defense now up to 16th in DVOA. The team overall is 23rd with the offense 22nd. So the entire team has trended away from the bottom 5 all year.

Yep, you started with 8 wins, then dropped to 7. Looks like one of those two will be right.

5-8 heading into the CLE game, so they exceeded your prediction by 5 games, Flus is CotY!

Records a little off, but PHI, SF, DET, DAL all locked in, NO, SEA, and CHI still in the hunt, lol.

The attitude stuff does worry me. How will vets handle that persona in an NFL locker room, especially if they lost their beloved QB for him. Time will tell how that all works out. Mahomes is literally Kermit, and that worked out. Mayfield was kind of a punk and he looks good on his 3rd team. Mitch Trubisky drove a Camry.

He literally pulled an A-Rod. I guess he got all butt hurt with them bringing DJ Moore in. He had such a good connection with Fields, the drop off in production is wild.

For Flus, what kind of OC is going to sign up for a job with a HC that would be on the Hot Seat all season? If they retain Flus, it is playoffs or bust next season. If they keep Flus, Getsy is more than likely coming back too then. For Fields, there are even more variables to consider but if you go back to the start of the season, this was his clean slate eval season with a WR1 and improved O-Line. Regardless of the team's record, I think they expected more out of him than they got.

This is surely interesting: He alluded to the fact that he would be part of that process and no decision has been made. If Fields was going to be the guy, it would be stated and known. The fact that he is non-committal about a QB entering his 4th year is telling.

41-80, 463 yds, 51.3%, 5.8 Y/A, 3 TD, 6 INT, 50.2 Passer Rating So worse than his career averages.

So the more this is peeled apart, the more things are stacking up against Fields staying. He hits on a lot of intangibles, which makes him so enticing, but with the game on the line, he actually plays the worst. I don't think two good games at the end of another lost season is going to move the needle that much. I also think Fields knows it too. On that long run down the sideline, he could've easily scored with Scott in front of him making a block, but he decided to slide instead. So for all the Fields fans, Sunday is probably his last game in a Bears uniform at Soldier Field.

Yeah for sure, and the timing of plays matter too. There is no comparison between Lamar and Justin in the 4th Quarter. Lamar Jackson has a 94.0 Passer Rating with 25 TD, 12 INT in the 4Q for his career, 20th all-time. Justin Fields? 204th out of 214 qualifying QBs with a 60.6, 10 TD, 16 INT. Rex Grossman came in at #205 at 60.4. Trubisky? 126th with a 77.2. Cutler? 66th with a 83.8. It is hard to even quantify how bad that is. There are very few QBs near him that were even long term starters. Trent Dilfer, Gus Frerotte, and Kordell Stewart were the only 3 other QBs under 70.0 who played in 100 games in their career.

One way to look at this is from other team's perspectives. The Bears need Fields to be top 12, otherwise, any other ranking makes him just average or below average, and you don't pay those guys. Based on performance from this season, here are QBs/teams that would not make Fields their starter if they got him for free (Bears cut him): Josh Allen/BUF Dak Prescott/DAL Tua Tagovailoa/MIA Lamar Jackson/BAL Justin Herbert/LAC Jalen Hurts/PHI Patrick Mahomes/KC Jared Goff/DET CJ Stroud/HOU Trevor Lawrence/JAX Joe Burrow/CIN Baker Mayfield/TB Brock Purdy/SF Then there are others that would depend on other factors, but I don't think these teams would switch to Fields if it was just based on current performance: Geno Smith/SEA Matt Stafford/LAR Kirk Cousins/MIN Russell Wilson/DEN Kyler Murray/ARZ That is 18 QBs and I did not include Jordan Love or guys like Watson/Flacco who even CLE would have a hard decision on who they would want today. The fact that you can get thru that many names is concerning. From our perspective, we may not want Goff or Mayfield, but they have played so much better than Fields that it would be hard for me to see those teams starting Fields over those guys.

Sam Darnold was traded for a 2nd, 4th, and 6th. Trey Lance trade got a 4th rounder. So I would assume they would get nothing less than a 3rd rounder and another pick.

I think the 3 collapses are hard to overcome. Last year we said they didn't feel like a 3-win team. This year, we feel like they are better than a 6-win team. That seems to point to inferior coaching. Like I said in another thread, they literally drew up a defensive scheme that made Justin Jones drop into coverage, which got them burnt and ultimately led to a loss. Then they get asked about it, and said "we have to be better" and then do it again for another opponent TD in the next game. Flus literally made that play 11v10. Jones is useless not rushing the passer taking up a blocker, so him dropping back 5 yards does absolutely nothing and it's not like he is going to catch anyone. Then you have the offense an Getsy. Flus is still approving the plays. He knows the play designs, they have to practice these where Tonyan is asked to block out of motion (whiffed completely). They are always cute on 3rd or 4th and short. Always. If it changed, then I would tip my cap to Flus and Getsy, but they have been doing this crap since Week 1.

The biggest concern is the running makes him very high risk, and you can't live and die by the amazing highlight reel scrambles. It's almost like a guy who can do 360 slam dunks, but then can't hit a shot to save his life. You keep seeing the dunks on ESPN, but his box score shows 12 pts on 5-20 shooting.

I know man, this is soo tough, getting 2x blue chippers in one year is such a massive haul when you don't need a QB. You can also trade one for an even bigger haul and still draft a top 10 player. It's a wild position to be in, but the good thing is there is almost no wrong answer.

He has the most INTs in the 4th Quarter in the NFL and he missed 4 games. He has not learned how to close yet in the NFL like he did in college.

Stinger, you are spot on. I like Fields, but I think someone like Williams has a higher ceiling as a passer. I am super high on Justin Fields and he is an NFL starter. If you had to break down his overall game where 2/3 of the grade was as a passer, and 1/3 as a runner, what would that look like? For me I would give him a 70 for a passer, not great, but not the worst, probably slightly below average. Then as a runner, I would give him a 92, with the only knocks being the sacks and fumbles. (70x.66 +92x.33)= 76.6. If you figure the top 10 QBs would grade out over 85, then the next 10 between 75-84, Fields would be near the bottom of that second 10. Say 18th. He is 22nd in QBR and 22nd in ELO, so I think that assessment is pretty solid. So the question becomes is Fields worth a 2nd contract that would pay him over $40M a year over drafting a QB, then using that cap space to sign a free agent for 4 years? For Williams, he displays things on tape that a lot of QB prospects don't, which projects him towards being a top 10 passer. Now that is not a guarantee, but the foundation is there once someone like him adjusts to the speed and size of the NFL. Without a 2nd rounder, I think there are a few scenarios where they draft Williams, then either take a WR/TE (Nabers/Odunze/Bowers) with that 2nd first rounder, then go Center in the 3rd. They could recoup a 2nd rounder for Fields (LVR at #44 or ATL at #47) and go Edge or Safety there. Also, they can also bring in an extra free agent without cap issues. I think out of respect for Fields, they wouldn't keep him as a lame duck QB in 2024. I think they move him to a team that is willing to sign him and/or accept the 5th year option.