Matt Nagy doesn’t even trust Justin Fields to face the Lions.
It would seem like a pretty easy call, with starting quarterback Andy Dalton limited all week with a bone bruise in his knee, for the Bears’ head coach to start his prized rookie Sunday at Soldier Field.
It would give Fields a winnable game at home against one of the worst defenses in the league — a very playable opportunity for Fields to respond after last week’s nine-sack debacle in Cleveland. And it would give the 33-year-old Dalton another week to get back to 100%. All good, right?
But no. Or not yet, anyway. Nagy said Friday that the quarterback decision for Sunday’s game would be a “game-time” decision.
“Andy is getting better each day,” Nagy said. “We’re just gonna see where he is at on Sunday.”
It would have been more understandable had Nagy gone back to a healthy Dalton who had practiced fully all week — though even that would have drawn some grumbling from Bears fans. But to have Dalton questionable on Friday after being limited all week — and still hold out hope he could play against the Lions seems like a clear lack of confidence in the rookie.
“I get all that and that’s not the case,” Nagy said firmly.
Fields, who suffered a thumb injury on his throwing hand against the Browns but practiced fully this week and is not on the injury report, still could start against the Lions. But the uncertainty two days before kickoff seems to confirm the worst fears of cynical Bears fans — that when Nagy says he’ll “do what’s best for the Chicago Bears” in managing Fields this season, he’s actually doing what’s best for Matt Nagy.
Almost by definition, Nagy is prioritizing winning games over the development of the Bears’ quarterback of the future. If he doesn’t trust Fields against the Lions, when will he ever trust the rookie to play again this season?
Oh, the irony. The Lions are the one team Nagy’s offense has consistently lived up to expectations against. Nagy is 5-1 against the Lions. His offense is averaging 26.3 points and 343.8 yards against them. The Bears’ average quarterback rating against the Lions under Nagy is 118.4, with 15 touchdowns and one interception.
Chase Daniel beat the Lions in Nagy’s offense. Mitch Trubisky was 4-1 against the Lions in Nagy’s offense, with a 121.0 passer rating (13 touchdowns, one interception). But the best quarterback prospect the Bears have had in decades can’t be trusted to start against them. Wow.
Why is it so important to Nagy that Andy Dalton starts, even with a bum knee? Nagy didn’t have an answer. Well, he did, but he didn’t.
“When there are injuries involved it’s really a lot different than anything else,” Nagy said. “When you have injuries involved there is health, your strengths and weaknesses within the game and that’s all stuff that internally we talk about.
“Whatever it is that you’re worried about what people are saying about making a decision Friday, Saturday or Sunday — we know what we are doing and that’s what we are believing in and going with.”
With all due respect to Nagy’s earnestness, “we know what we are doing’ has little to no credibility outside of Halas Hall these days. All anyone can do at this point is wait and hope that it somehow works out for the best for Nagy and the Bears.
“The good part about both of those guys is that they’re both progressing in the right way,” Nagy said. “What we gotta do is be able to see where Andy’s at and really, up until Sunday — that’s why it’s a game-time decision.”
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October 02, 2021 at 08:23AM
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In your faith: ‘Game-time decision’ shows a lack of confidence in Justin Fields - Chicago Sun-Times
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