National Football League

Chicago Bears rookie QB Justin Fields struggles vs. Browns in first start

Updated Sep. 26, 2021 7:22 p.m. ET

To describe Justin Fields' first NFL start as rough would be an understatement.

Chicago's first-round pick was running for his life all day on Sunday, repeatedly succumbing to the immense pressure brought on by the Cleveland Browns' defensive line.

Fields found himself on the ground more times than he was able to complete a pass – he took nine sacks while completing just six of his 20 attempts on the day.

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Cleveland would comfortably dominate the outing, winning 26-6.

It was a record day for the Browns' defensive troupe. Their sack total was the most they've registered since 2015. Headman Myles Garrett collected the highest single-game total (4.5) of his decorated career and Jadeveon Clowney had two of his own.

"Rush and coverages just working together," Garrett commented on what worked for his team during the game. "We were able to confuse the young guy. Props to him for staying tough and standing in there trying to make plays throughout the stretch; we were just able to make him hold the ball. We got some ballplayers here, some dogs, and we were able to put it on film for everybody to see. Our defense will be something special."

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Fields' debut, on the other hand, was anything but special.

He posted just 68 yards through the air, only one more yard than the 67 lost due to the sacks. Fields ran for 12 yards on just three carries had a quarterback rating of 41.3.

And while Fields' individual play was intensely scrutinized, so too was the playcalling of his head coach, Matt Nagy. The Bears averaged 1.1 yards per offensive play, the second fewest by any team in a game this century.

Fields has a unique skill set, and while he possesses a cannon for a right arm, the playmaking prowess he provides with his legs is a deadly attribute.

But Nagy kept Fields inside the pocket throughout the first half, opting for stylistic schemes that would've fit a QB like Andy Dalton, or Mitchell Trubisky. And the NFL landscape was livid that his abilities were limited by Nagy's failure to adjust.

Fields was given some room to venture outside of the pocket in the second half, but by then it was too little, too late.

"Just [going] to try to keep getting better each and every day," Fields said after the game. "Every game you should approach it and expect to win. I wasn't trying to treat it like my first start, I was just trying to treat it like a game and not make the moment bigger than it is. Just go out there and ball out."

Nagy has been adamant that Dalton, who's currently sidelined with a knee injury, will be the Bears' starter once he returns from the injury. But right now, he's got to shift his focus to Fields as his number one signal-caller.

And if the Bears are going to win with Fields at the helm, they're going to have to do it with an entirely different schematic outlook than the one they ran Sunday.

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