Toughing It Out at QB

Justin Fields' toughness could help him get through a game if he plays Wednesday but his injured thumb is the sole determing factor in whether he takes the field.

The final decision on Justin Fields’ return could come Wednesday or even Thursday night just before kickoff.

It’s entirely a matter of Fields’ thumb function and even matters as important as a particular style game plan within the Bears offensive system take less priority.

“Well, he's proven that already, he's as tough as they come,” Bears offensive coordinator Luke Getsy said. “There's been plenty of moments in the two years that I've been with him that he's communicated really well, and then shown his toughness and played through stuff.”

A thumb for a quarterback is a little more than stuff, though. He can’t throw unless it’s right.

The Bears did not practice again Tuesday, holding a walk-through instead for the second straight day. However, Fields does do some throwing at those. He was listed on the injury report as being able to participate only on a limited basis again Tuesday. The only player with a changed injury status Tuesday was tight end Cole Kmet, who would have gone through a full practice after a knee injury was bothering him Monday and had him sitting out.

The only actual practice of the week is Wednesday. How Fields handles this and possibly the aftermath without soreness on Thursday morning could determine his availability.

Fields so far in the NFL has had a groin strain, cracked ribs, separated left shoulder, hip strain and the current dislocated right thumb. 

Such is the life of any NFL quarterback, and particularly those blessed with an ability to run. Scramblers can get hurt, and even when they’re not scrambling they tend to be injured more because they’re holding the ball longer and assessing whether to run or not. 

How else to translate Fields being sacked being sacked on 12.9% of pass plays and Bagent only 4.3%. Improved offensive line blocking alone is not going to make up that kind of percentage difference.

“It's all about how he feels with his hand,” Mooney said. “It doesn’t matter how good it looks. I mean you have to think about all things. Maybe if he falls on it, how he'll feel after that. If he gets tackled or whatever. So it's all about how he feels.”

There’s no doubt what Fields wants to do on Thursday night.

"I mean obviously he definitely wants to play,” Mooney said. “He doesn't want to miss a game. He wants to play with his guys, as well. I think his mindset is just going out there and doing what he can at the best he can, so, and just having fun with the guys on the team.

“Not much of what other people think outside. We're trying to win games at the end of the day, and that’s just his mindset.”

Winning with a game plan using a different style of quarterback is no easy task, but Getsy thinks they’re well situated to do this.

The game plan they used with Tyson Bagent on Sunday was almost like what they would use with Fields. He executed zone-read runs and bootlegs like Fields would, although definitely not with the running speed of the Bears starter.

“I think that’s the cool part of how we put this thing together at the very beginning where we felt like we kind of put it all out there for our guys and being able to take this thing in a few different directions and the guys feel really comfortable in doing that,” Getsy said. “So, I don't think from everybody else's perspective in that (quarterback) room other than the two quarterbacks, it's not going to feel like it's a different game plan by any means if we go one direction or the other (with who starts)."

If Fields does return, the emphasis is finding a way to win but also Fields’ growth.

The coaches aren’t talking about Fields’ development in relation to the long-term future, or the coming decision on his fifth-year option.

“I think it’s continue to grow,” Getsy said. “It's continued growth. Continue to improve on his overall game, on every aspect of it, the run game, the protection game, and the pass game.

“And it's really important that we continue to grow and keep going where we think he can go.”

Twitter: BearDigest@BearsOnMaven