Justin Fields has a problem because it seems as if the referees refuse to treat him like any other quarterback in the league.
Cam Newton had to deal with that throughout his career and now Justin Fields of the Chicago Bears has inherited Newton’s unfortunate legacy.
ESPN’s Teddy Bruschi brought this up with much frustration on Sunday before games.
“I’ve seen enough of him getting hit when he slides, getting hit illegally when these should be called. …Listen, man, you’ve got a franchise quarterback here, and these guys, they’re teeing off on this guy. And these officials think just because he’s big, strong, and fast, that when he starts to slide, he really doesn’t mean it. ‘I’ve got to slam him down, I’ve got to do things like this, because, ref, how am I supposed to bring him down?’ When are the officials going to give him the respect that he deserves? Because this can be the future of the league in this guy’s case right here.”
It happened again in Sunday’s game between the Bears and the Green Bay Packers. Fields was sliding to protect himself, but he still found himself being hit late as his head bounced off the turf. No penalty was thrown.
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We have to wait and see if the same happens in 2024. We are still not sure if Fields will be on the Bears roster next year as the team has the number one overall draft pick yet again.
Fields completed 11 of 16 passes for 148 yards while adding 27 yards on four rushing attempts in the Bears’ 17-9 loss to the Packers.
