The Chicago Bears are getting set for their second preseason game coming on Sunday night against the Buffalo Bills. Chicago is hoping to rise to new head coach Ben Johnson's expectations, given some unhappy comments he's made of late.
While the Bears are focused on their own preparation, it's never too soon to look at how some former Chicago players are doing this preseason There's been a lot of roster turnover with the franchise in recent years, so there's no shortage of guys to look at.
Unfortunately one ex-Bears QB, who is expected to be a starter, just suffered through a miserable exhibition contest and needs to improve quickly to shed the bust label.
It's insane how bad Justin Fields is at passing. What's even crazier is that I was the only one who noticed at Ohio State. pic.twitter.com/rOLrakciYn
— Joe (@JoeA_NFL) August 16, 2025
Former Bears QB Justin Fields Struggles Mightily in 2nd Preseason Game with Jets
Justin Fields, whom Chicago took with the 11th pick in the 2021 NFL Draft, is now the New York Jets' starter. He has tantilizing potential but struggles with mechanics and accuracy. This has been partially exacerbated by the poor coaching staffs he's worked with, however, and it's hard to argue that he's made significant improvements on his early years.
Still, he finished 1/5 passing for four yards in a 31-12 loss to the New York Giants on Saturday night, adding five yards on the ground but failing to separate himself despite being the obvious starter. Fields dealt with an injury recently, but that hardly does much to alleviate Jets fans' concerns.
It's worth pointing out that Fields completed three of his four attempts in his preseason debut for 42 yards and added a rushing TD to help New York beat the Green Bay Packers 30-10. When you consider his practice struggles, however, this effort represents another meltdown that could frustrate Jets fans this upcoming season.
Justin Fields is averaging 3.9 air yards per attempt in the preseason — and it hasn’t been much more than that in practice either. https://t.co/MR9oZKOOop
— Zack Rosenblatt (@ZackBlatt) August 17, 2025
Fields has all of the potential in the world, both as a passer and runner. For whatever reason, things haven't worked out. Averaging 0.8 yards per attempt as he did on Saturday night is as unacceptable as it gets, so Fields needs to prove more as a passer.
Senior writer at the Athletic, Zack Rosenblatt, noted that Fields is averaging just 3.9 air yards per pass attempt in the preseason and hasn't done much more in practice. When you have a playmaker as capable as Garrett Wilson and other productive players like Allen Lazard and Josh Reynolds, you expect better results and a willingness to throw down the field.
It's possible that Fields was scared off from deep passes thanks to his time with the Bears. That said, the only way he can be successful is to be willing to take chances and utilize his legs. He needs to be better, but it's a rough start for him in New York no matter how you look at it.