Chicago Bears teammates, coaches in awe of Justin Fields’ ‘special’ performance vs. Miami

If there’s anybody who is not surprised by Justin Fields’ success over the past month or so, it’s Bears tight end Cole Kmet.

Kmet has seen all the work that Fields has endured to reach this point. The Bears began learning Luke Getsy’s offense in April. Kmet, Fields and Darnell Mooney spent extra time working out together in Atlanta during the offseason.

“It’s been great,” Kmet said Monday at Halas Hall in Lake Forest. “He’s been the same guy since he’s gotten here, which has been really cool. Just keeps coming to work every day, and we know the type of guy that he is. His confidence in himself, that’s never changed.”

Fields rushed for 178 yards, the most ever for a quarterback in a regular-season NFL game, in Sunday’s loss to the Miami Dolphins. The Bears’ offense has been legitimately fun to watch over the past three games. It has been a long time since Bears fans could say that.

Fields’ running ability has been the No. 1 reason why. He has averaged 106 rushing yards per game over the past three games. Getsy is drawing up designed runs for Fields, but more importantly, Fields has developed a feel for when to run from the pocket.

One of the biggest criticisms of his game last season as a rookie was his shaky decision-making when it came to knowing when to run and when to stay put. Those concerns have disappeared. Fields has developed a feel for the pocket, likely because of gaining more experience in live action.

“Now you’re just seeing the big splash plays on the field,” Kmet said. “He takes off, man, it’s special, so it’s pretty fun to watch. When you’re on the field, you just get out of the way and let him do his thing. Yeah, he’s special when he’s got the ball in his hands.”

Fields ran for eight first downs in the game. He ran the ball 15 times for an average of 11.9 yards per carry. His 61-yard touchdown run was the longest by a Bears quarterback ever.

He also threw for three touchdowns, including a pair that went to Kmet.

“I think I’m just growing and getting better each and every week,” Fields said after the game Sunday. “My main goal right now is just to continue to do that. Continue to trend up, and each and every day I practice, just keep getting better and better.”

Head coach Matt Eberflus was impressed with what he called Fields’ “unscripted athleticism.” Fields ran time and time again while avoiding taking any big hits, too.

Watching from the sideline Sunday, Bears defensive players were in awe of what their quarterback was doing. Defensive end Trevis Gipson called it “amazing to witness” when asked about it Monday.

“He makes plays that you just go, ‘Wow,’” linebacker Jack Sanborn said after the game.

There were a lot of wows going around Sunday.