Coach Reveals How D.J. Moore Solves Justin Fields’ Biggest Issue

Justin Fields improved last season for the Chicago Bears. However, nobody can safely say it was a breakout year for the young quarterback. While he was outstanding as a runner, his shortcomings as a passer were hard to ignore. Among the most telling issues was his bad tendency to hold the ball. Too often, he’d take off and scramble or take a sack rather than unloading a pass. Fields had 444 drop-backs last season. He only threw the ball 318 times. Yes, his scrambles ate into that discrepancy, but it’s still way too high. It looked like he simply wasn’t willing to throw the ball, often because he felt the window wasn’t there. That appears to have changed with the arrival of D.J. Moore.

Quarterbacks coach Andrew Janocko has noticed the difference immediately. It comes from a place of trust that wasn’t there a year ago. He explained to Colleen Kane of the Chicago Tribune why this is such a big deal for Fields’ development.

“He’s so smooth getting out of breaks,” Janocko said. “He gets off the line (quickly). He has savvy. He’s really smart. And with a smart player and a smart receiver, the way they can get off, the way they can beat press (man coverage), the way they can beat cloud (coverage), it really helps him get open so as a quarterback you’re not even thinking about, ‘Is he in the window?’ He’s in the window.”

In other words, Fields doesn’t have to wait and see if Moore is open. He trusts the receiver enough to believe he will be open, which is why his passes are coming out on time and in rhythm. That didn’t happen nearly enough last season.

D.J. Moore should help Fields avoid scrambling.

While the highlights of the quarterback escaping pressure with his legs were fun to watch, it was a reminder of how inadequate the offense around him was. Fields took a lot of hits trying to make something out of nothing. Though successful, that isn’t the key to a long career. His best option is finding an open target and getting them the ball. Then he can watch them do most of the work. A strong running game helps with that, but having explosive options in the passing game is preferable.

There is no doubt D.J. Moore is the best receiver Fields has played with in the NFL to this point. He is the original version of the quarterback’s former teammate at Ohio State, Chris Olave. He and Fields made magic for two years in college. This explains why he meshed with Moore so quickly. Poles deserves credit for recognizing how good the two were for each other. Now the hard part has arrived. Fans must wait to see them in action.