While Chicago Bears quarterback Justin Fields has only been in the league for two seasons, the 24-year-old believes he is already among the greatest to ever do it in one specific category.
Justin Fields’ first season in the NFL had some understandable growing pains. The 11th pick in the 2021 NFL Draft was thrust into the always-difficult spot of having to start games as a rookie QB, for a struggling team, and in a tough division. It is a position many talented players have a hard time in.
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In his sophomore season, Fields showed that his shortcomings in his rookie campaign were likely just all a part of the tough learning curve of being a young signal-caller at the highest level, as he improved in several key facets of his game in 2022. He bumped his completion percentage up nearly two points to 60.4, and while his passer rating, overall QBR, passing yards, and throwing touchdowns weren’t Pro Bowl-level, they were all markedly improved last season compared to 2021.
However, one area where Justin Fields was able to play at a superstar level was when he tucked the ball and ran. In 15 games last season, the Chicago Bears QB ran 160 times for an unbelievable 1,143 yards and eight touchdowns. It was the seventh most rushing yards in the entire NFL last season and just behind Pro Bowlers Saquon Barkley, Miles Sanders, and Dalvin Cook.
Justin Fields says he is a top 5 rushing QB all time
Not only was it a fantastic single-season effort, it actually was historic too, because Fields’ 1,143 yards landed him second all-time for rushing yards by a QB in a season. Only behind former league MVP and rushing QB savant Lamar Jackson. And it seems that performance has given him a very high opinion of himself when it comes to the best running quarterbacks ever.
- Justin Fields stats (2022): 2,242 passing yards, 1,143 rushing yards, 27 total TD
During a recent appearance on CBS Sports’ “All Things Covered” podcast, Justin Fields was asked who he feels are the top five rushing QBs of all time, and was evenly jokingly suggested that he could add himself if he wanted. Well, he did and proclaimed, “I’m definitely in the top five.”
After himself, the Chicago Bears signal caller said Michael Vick, Lamar Jackson, Hall-of-Famer Steve Young, and one-time NFL MVP Cam Newton were the other four greatest running QBs of all time.
Notably left off his list were Randall Cunningham, Fran Tarkenton, Steve McNair, Donovan McNabb, and Bears great Bobby Douglass, who held the single-season rushing record for QB for decades.