The Bears’ last regime drafted Justin Fields at No. 11 overall last year and the quarterback showed only flashes of his potential as a rookie.
New head coach Matt Eberflus is expecting some significant progress from the signal-caller in his second season.
“I said last time in public that the development of him for the second year should be a big jump,” Eberflus said at the annual league meeting this week, via Larry Mayer of the team’s website. “It should be. That’s what we’re looking for. We’re looking for better technique, better fundamentals, better decision-making, better timing, everything.
“He’s all on board on that. He’s excited about where he is and he’s been working his tail off. That’s what we want, just that big jump from Year One to Year Two.”
One factor in him getting there will be the team’s coaching. Eberflus brought on former Packers quarterbacks coach Luke Getsy as his first offensive coordinator in Chicago. Even though Getsy has not called plays before in the league, Eberflus is confident in Getsy’s ability to do the job.
“You have to have instincts,” Eberflus said. “You have to go with your gut sometimes. But it’s all based on information that you have through analytics and study and statistics before you get to the game, and then you rip your call … Before the game, you understand, ‘Hey, I want to call this and the sequence in which you call it.’ So, we’re having conversations about all those different types of items of being a play-caller right now. He’s excited to get going. I know he’s excited for the challenge.”
Fields appeared in 12 games with 10 starts last season. He completed 59 percent of his passes for 1,870 yards with seven touchdowns and 10 interceptions. He also rushed for 420 yards with a pair of TDs.