NEWSLETTER
Let’s get the obvious caveats out of the way.
I wish the Chicago Bears offensive line was protecting Justin Fields better. Also? I wish that Offensive Coordinator Luke Getsy didn’t call a designed run on the first play of the team’s final offensive drive. And I wish that Head Coach Matt Eberflus, who said he knew his quarterback was getting leg work throughout the game due to cramps, would’ve done more to squash Getsy’s questionable play call.
With all of that being said, Justin Fields needs to get the same calls (like, then ones from the refs) other quarterbacks do. Full stop.
Another week is in the books, and it is another week of the Bears griping about the officiating. And with good reason, too. Because, once again, it was Fields getting hit late and high in a game in which it didn’t get called. Frankly, Fields’ teammates are fed up by this development.
Rookie safety Jaquan Brisker takes the mic this week to call out the NFL’s officiating:
“If that was a different quarterback, they would be throwing hella flags. A lot of flags,” Brisker said, via NBC Sports Chicago. “I feel like the league has to look at that. It’s crazy how many times he gets hit in the head every single game, but he still gets up. Gets hit out of bounds, late, or near the white.
“If that was Tom Brady, Jared Goff, or anybody like that, they throwing flags immediately. Just as you seen today. They threw a flag to Mariota, and he tripped over himself. I feel like they got to respect Justin some more and look at him as a quarterback because, obviously, there you should be more flags. He’s getting targeted every single game and none of them are being thrown.”
Hey, man! No arguments here. And while Brisker might get a letter from league offices, I bet his quarterback appreciates the support.
Meanwhile, Eberflus is preparing to send game tape to the league offices because his quarterback is getting hit late and officials aren’t throwing flags or calling penalties. And apparently, this isn’t the first time Eberflus has done this. In the video below, The Athletic’s Kevin Fishbain points out one of the most egregious missed calls:
I am growing tired of writing about officiating every week. But if I’m tired of discussing it, I can only imagine how tiresome it is for Fields to keep getting hit like this. Fields continues getting dinged after the whistle, taking late hits, and shots to the head. Hits that other quarterbacks get protection from officials by way of throwing flags, calling penalties, and moving the chains 15 yards.
When Fields was a rookie, you could understand (even if the premise was whack) that first-year players don’t get those calls. But we’re in Year 2 and Fields is coming off consecutive weeks of winning major awards. Fields is a star on the rise. His presence is growing and FOX sending its No. 2 broadcast team out to see the Bears for back-to-back weeks suggests the league knows Chicago’s QB1 is a star on the rise. And yet, the lack of calls is bothersome as heck.
So fix it already. Or meet me in Temecula, NFL officiating committee.
