Calls for Justin Fields to start are growing louder originally appeared on NBC Sports Chicago
The Chicago Bears have two preseason games under their belt, and the chorus of calls for Justin Fields to start over Andy Dalton is growing louder by the day.
But head coach Matt Nagy and general manger Ryan Pace have been resolute in their commitment to start Dalton in the name of developing Fields, using the vaunted Patrick Mahomes playbook from Kansas City.
While Chicago has been wracking their brains trying to understand this commitment to Dalton, the national media is adding pressure to start Fields.
"It feels pretty obvious to me, the Bears are suffering the consequences of making a bad promise," First Things First host Nick Wright said.
"They made a promise without giving themselves an out."
The Bears declared Dalton the starter after signing him well before the NFL Draft and Fields fell into their laps. And they're reluctant to reverse the course because Wright suggests the Bears "don't want to lose credibility with future free agents" by breaking their promise.
Part of the Mahomes plan was what he learned behind veteran Alex Smith, but that doesn't hold water with former NFL quarterback Dan Orlovsky.
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"We need to remove ourselves a little bit from the archaic thought process that quarterbacks need to come in, sit and learn. This is not 2005 anymore," Orlovsky said on Get Up. "These guys have grown up in 7-on-7s, private coaching. They are so much more advance than guys like me who came in in 2005 were.
"All these guys should be playing, Justin Fields being the leader of that!"
Orlovsky also notes it's easier for a coach to help a bad offensive line, which it looks like the Bears will have, than a bad quarterback. Is Andy Dalton a bad quarterback? Not necessarily, but Fields might be better.
And because that Bears' offensive line is so bad, and the Rams' Aaron Donald looks poised to torment Bears quarterbacks in Week 1, some fans have said they're cool with Dalton starting that game.
"My least favorite Justin Fields take, I hate it and it's everywhere. The Justin Fields take that you can't start him Week 1 against the Rams. You can't start him against Aaron Donald," Good Morning Football's Kyle Brandt said.
"That is B.S.. First of all, there is no hiding from players in the NFL. Second of all, you don't pluck this guy from Division III and he's never seen an athlete before, he's played at the highest level of the sport at the amateur level."
But the decision is clear for Brandt, who notes that Fields' stats from the second preseason game are misleading because of all the drops be receivers.
"It's hard for me to take away that Andy Dalton is the best option for them," Brandt said.
Brandt added: "I hate that he's not been given an opportunity to prove it."
Fields will get the start on Saturday in the preseason finale against the Titans, but he won't have the notable skill position players with him.
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