Chicago Bears quarterback Justin Fields has a chance to join lofty company Sunday against the Philadelphia Eagles.
Fields sits 95 yards shy of becoming just the third quarterback in NFL history to rush for 1,000 yards in a season. He’d join Michael Vick and Lamar Jackson.
“That would be crazy with Michael Vick, me growing up in Atlanta,” Fields said, via the Associated Press. “I remember I was 8, 9 years old. I had his cleats. So that would just be crazy, kind of just full circle. I mean, it would be awesome.
“And Lamar, everybody knows he’s a great quarterback, a dynamic playmaker. Having my name with those two guys would be great for sure.”
Fields leads all QBs with 905 rushing yards and is on pace to break Jackson’s single-season rushing record (1,206 in 2019) by one yard.
The Bears’ offense woke up from its early-season slumber after offensive coordinator Luke Getsy added more designed QB runs to the play sheet. Using Fields’ athletic ability forces defenses to account for him on every play, and it’s also helped open up the passing game with play action becoming more effective. Before the Bears’ bye week, Fields rushed a season-low six times but generated a season-high 254 passing yards in the loss.
“I think I’ve said this before but I really wasn’t even this good of a rusher in college,” the former Ohio State product said. “I didn’t run this much in college. This rushing thing just kind of picked up this year.”
Third-down scrambles have been key for Fields, leading to a 45.1% third-down conversion rate (6th in NFL). Facing a ruthless Eagles pass rush that leads the NFL with 49 sacks, those plays will be pivotal Sunday against a Philadelphia defense that ranks No. 1 versus the pass.