Bears Bye Week Breakdown: Justin Fields’ Place Among Roster Needs

Bears Offensive Needs

The Chicago Bears, having beaten the Minnesota Vikings in Week 12, will go undefeated in Week 13.

Of course, they will also go winless. Such is the nature of the bye week. Over the last two seasons, it has come later for the Bears than it has in any other season going back at least to the 2000 campaign. It might be a little later than usual. But that just means we have more data to evaluate when trying to determine the state of the team.

Bears Offensive Breakdown: Justin Fields & Braxton Jones are Long-Term Pieces

Bears QB Conundrum

Several things can be true at the same time. In this case, it is entirely possible that Fields? struggles do not fall entirely on him ? that he has not been put in a position to be successful. He may also be the main culprit. But it is also possible that for a myriad of reasons, his Bears tenure is closer to an end than one would hope for a former No. 11 overall pick. The Bears are staring squarely at the No. 1 pick in the 2024 draft thanks to the Carolina Panthers.

Add in Fields? struggles and it?s easy to see why he is on the proverbial ?hot seat?.

Fields is completing 64.4% of his passes for 1,587 passing yards with 12 touchdowns and six interceptions. His touchdown rate is at a career-high 5.4% while his interception (2.7%) and sack rates (11.6%) are both at career-low levels, albeit only slightly on the latter figure.

Fields? 5,699 passing yards rank 90th all-time among quarterbacks with at least 30 starts over their first three seasons, per Stathead. His 36 passing touchdowns? 34th among that same group of players. Perhaps encouragingly, though, his 61.1% completion percentage ranks 31st in that group. Then there is, of course, his running ability which helped him set the franchise?s single-season rushing record last season; something he said he didn?t want to repeat.

His 9.6 attempts per game are down from last season, as are his 50 rushing yards per contest.

Fields ranks 26th in Pro Football Focus? quarterback grades this season. Subtracting players who were not their respective team?s usual starter or who were benched, Fields jumps another five spots.

Unfortunately, that is not high enough to eliminate projections of his ouster in just a few short months.

Maybe the peaks, the visuals of Bears general manager Ryan Poles embracing him in the locker room following their Week 12 win over the Minnesota Vikings, or team president Kevin Warren?s affinity for Fields outweighs the issues that have cropped up, including durability.

Braxton Jones Proving OL Adage

There?s a saying about offensive linemen that if you?re hearing about them during the game, it?s usually a bad thing. For Bears left tackle Braxton Jones, that has shown to be the case. Jones rightfully catches a lot of grief over his penalties. He has six. That is second on the team behind rookie right tackle Darnell Wright?s team-leading 10 calls against, per Football Database.

Jones, however, missed six games with a neck injury.? Wright has suited up in all 12 contests. Beyond the penalties, most of which have been false starts, Jones has been solid this season.

Through Thursday Night Football in Week 13, Jones ranks 10th among all tackles with an 81.6 pass-blocking grade, per PFF.

His run-blocking grade (65.2) ranks just 47th, though, dropping his overall grade to 41st. Still, Jones also entered the week leading the league in Pass Blocking Win Rate, per ESPN. His value also showed during his absence with the Bears’ offensive line averaging a 56.3 pass-blocking grade without him and a 64.6 pass-blocking grade with him.

There were other pieces in and out of the lineup that impacted that grade.

Their run blocking also still grades out worse with him, but only slightly (55.3 compared to 56) ? backup Larry Borom ranks second in Run Block Win Rate. In discussing ways to improve the offensive line, Penn State?s Olu Fashanu and Notre Dame?s Joe Alt have been popular picks with the second of the Bears? two first-rounders in 20204. However, the numbers seem to suggest that Jones? position should not be the target.

Bears Interior Offensive Line Needs Work

No position group showcases the conflict certain metrics can present than the interiors of the Bears? offensive line. All three of Teven Jenkins, Lucas Patrick, and Cody Whitehair appear in the top-20 rankings for Pass Blocking Win Rate among interior offensive linemen.

Both Patrick and Whitehair rank higher than Jenkins. But Jenkins has far and away been the better player of the three this season. Patrick ranks 48th at his position, checking in around the same area in both pass and run blocking. Whitehair?s grades rank 67th in pass-blocking, 115th overall, and 119th in run-blocking among guards.

Jenkins? grade checks in 12th among guards and 23rd among all interior linemen.

Bears’ Teven Jenkins Reacts to Lucas Patrick’s Comments

If the Bears are intent on adding to the offensive line ? which they already have since Poles hand-picked four of the five starters from Week 12 ? they might need to focus in the middle where errant snaps have been a bugaboo.

In that case, they can use one of their first-round picks on a player at another premium position.

Wide Receiver Room Still Thin

Poles attacked the tight end position three ways. First, he gave Cole Kmet, whom he inherited, time to develop. Kmet rewarded that patience and is having a breakout season following his contract extension in the offseason.

The Bears have also proven to be an effective team running the ball, regardless of who is carrying the ball. They have plugged all of D?Onta Foreman, Khalil Herbert, Roschon Johnson, and even Darrynton Evans in and had success. Having Fields helps. But the underlying idea is it doesn?t have to be something they rush to address, no pun intended.

Their wide receiver room is a different story.

DJ Moore, having already logged his fourth 1000-yard season of his career in just 12 games, has been all he?s cracked up to be and then some. Behind him, though, things are far less certain.

Darnell Mooney showed that he can still be impactful. But he is a free agent after the season.

The Bears entered the season with Chase Claypool set to man the No. 3/No. 2b spot. But that plan fell through and has left the Bears closer to last year?s situation than expected.

Equanimeous St. Brown is a good blocker. But his impact as a pass-catcher has been lacking while he too is set for free agency after the season. And Poles draft picks Velus Jones Jr. and Tyler Scott have not filled the roles they were brought in for to this point. It could also paint a very clear picture, at least offensively, for the offseason.