Chicago Bears: Justin Fields sends message to Andy Dalton critics

It wasn’t a pretty showing for the Chicago Bears. Preseason game number two was rough. One of the only positives in this one was, once again, rookie quarterback Justin Fields.

Simply looking at the box score, one would think it was Andy Dalton who was far superior against the Buffalo Bills. However, veteran wide receiver Rodney Adams made a spectacular catch and run on his way to a 73-yard touchdown, which accounted for half of Dalton’s production all game.

Fields, meanwhile, was victim of several drops and probably the worst protection he had ever seen throughout his football career. Still, after the game, the rookie was all class. He told the media that no matter who is on the field with him, they’re going to “ball out.” Clearly, he’s not making any excuses.

Also in his postgame interview, Fields touched on the quarterback “competition.”

Justin Fields made sure every Chicago Bears fan knew how he felt about veteran Andy Dalton.

Fields was asked about his thoughts regarding the fans at Soldier Field chanting things like, “we want Justin” while Dalton is on the field. His response shouldn’t surprise anybody:

"“The fans are awesome … but, they also have to realize that Andy (Dalton) is a human being too … so I really think it’s disrespectful to Andy, them cheering my name out like that.”"

You can watch the full interview here.

Since Day 1 with the Bears, Fields has been the consummate professional. So, his response when asked about the issue of Dalton being booed or fans chanting his name with Dalton still out there did not catch anyone by surprise.

Fields continues to tell reporters that he is not worried about a quarterback controversy and that his only job is to go out and get better every single day. Although the media wants to create stories and try to pry certain reactions out of Fields, he’s given them nothing of the sort to work with.

This kid gets it. He has been nothing but respectful in each and every answer he has given the media. He has been all class in respect to his teammates, especially Dalton. This is a guy who understands his time will come, and when it does, it will last a while. For now, he’s enjoying the journey and continuing to get better.

As fans, what more could we ask for? The decision to keep Dalton as the team’s starter is all on Matt Nagy. But, Fields has handled every step of the process with the utmost professionalism.

When Fields does get his chance, the fans will have plenty of reason to get rowdy. But, for now, his message is pretty clear: cheer for whoever is out there on the field, because they’re all on the same team.