What has happened to Justin Fields in the NFL?

The Ohio State football team was led to the National Championship Game in 2020 by Justin Fields. That offense was loaded at pretty much every position except running back, although Trey Sermon was coming off a record-breaking performance. Fields was really good that entire year.

He was then the 11th pick in the NFL Draft that Spring. Since then, things have not gone well for Fields. The Bears have cratered the last two seasons, winning only 8 games in the past two years. It just hasn’t happened for Fields in the NFL. Why is that? What happened?

Part of the reason why Fields hasn’t succeeded is that his surrounding cast may be the worst collection of offensive players in the league. The offensive line doesn’t give him time to throw. When he does, his receivers might be the worst collection of receivers in the league.

Fields is not completely blameless for his failure in the NFL thus far though. We saw in that final Ohio State season that Fields holds onto the ball too long. He tries to make the big play all the time and doesn’t take the easy plays. He did that against Alabama and that hurt the Buckeyes’ production in the National Championship Game.

He’s doing the same sort of thing in the NFL now. We saw in last night’s game that he holds onto the ball way too long. He also couldn’t hit a couple of guys that were wide open too. It’s a confluence of things that has brought the Bears to have the worst offense in the league.

Can Justin Fields turn things around? Possibly. I can tell you that his leash is getting pretty short. He plays for a GM and a coach that didn’t draft him. He’s still a dynamic runner that can make things happen with his legs. Fields is also incredibly tough.

I know one thing; Fields is not going to quit. He’s going to work hard to try and figure things out. I hope he does because he is one of my favorite Buckeyes in recent memory.