When it comes to quarterback Justin Fields, General Manager Ryan Poles and head coach Matt Eberflus aren’t saying the exact same things.
Earlier on Tuesday, Poles said that while the plan is to keep Justin Fields as the team’s starter in 2023, the club will do its due diligence on the quarterbacks in the draft.
But Eberflus went a little bit farther in his characterization of the team having the No. 1 overall pick.
“I just think right now all options are open for us,” Eberflus said in his Combine press conference.
Now, Eberflus wasn’t directly talking about quarterbacks or Fields with that answer. But saying all options are on the table means that selecting a quarterback hasn’t been ruled out.
Eberflus was asked explicitly if he was ready to commit to Fields starting for the Bears in 2023. But Eberflus did not do it.
“Like we said, we’re just in the process of evaluation of everything right now,” Eberflus said. “Justin had a really good year last year. We’re excited where his progress is. And just like everybody else, he’s working to improve his game as well as the football team’s.”
Still, Eberflus noted that he thinks Fields is on a good trajectory.
“For the first year in the system, I think he’s on the right track,” Eberflus said. “He’s just got to make small improvements and adjustments to his game and he’s going to do that.
“Some of the conversations that we’ve had and that we’ve talked about, obviously at the end of last year, was really just to take what the defense gives you. I know that’s coach talk but that’s really what he needs to do. He’s obviously a tremendous athlete and can do a lot of different things. But if we call a designed run, sure. Third down, situations like that, situations in the red zone — certainly do it there. But when it’s first and second down, early in the game, just take what the defense gives you and move on.”
In his second season, Fields completed 60.4 percent of his passes for 2,242 yards with 17 touchdowns and 11 interceptions. He also rushed for 1,143 yards with eight touchdowns, averaging a league-leading 7.1 yards per carry.