As quarterbacks of the past continue to fall from favor, the young gunslingers of the future are continuing to rise. One of them is Chicago Bears QB Justin Fields, who has been balling out of his mind for the last 5 weeks.
As a guy from Atlanta, I’m not quick to dub someone “the next Michael Vick” or “Michael Vick 2.0.” But, Fields’ play on the field (no pun intended) has warranted the comparisons.
Obviously, he’s no Lamar Jackson yet, who has won an MVP, ran for 1,000 yards in multiple seasons and has won nearly 75 percent of all of the games he’s played in. But even Jackson has not done the things on the gridiron that Fields has been doing for the past couple of weeks.
In his last five games, Fields has scored a total of 11 total touchdowns with only two interceptions, is responsible for 1,306 total yards and his team is averaging 25.6 per game. On Sunday against the Dolphins, Fields threw for 123 yards and three touchdowns and ran for 178 yards and a rushing touchdown, becoming the ONLY player in NFL history with 3 or more passing touchdowns and 140 or more rushing yards in a game. The dude is SPECIAL.
His 178 yards on the ground broke Vick’s record for most rushing yards by a QB in a single game (in the regular season). On the season, Fields now has 602 yards on the ground and has more yards than some of the best runningbacks in the league.
But enough of me writing about how impressive Fields has been, let me show you.
Now you know why I’m comparing Fields to one of the most beloved athletes in Atlanta’s history. He’s doing things on Sunday that we haven’t seen since Vick. To make it even sweeter, Fields grew up just 40 minutes away from Atlanta, so he’s putting on for the city as well.
While I’m not a Bears fan, I’m just very happy to see yet another Black QB who was ridiculed in the pre-draft process excel on the highest level in professional football.