Mike Florio, Chris Simms Give Credit to Eberflus, Fields for Dominant Run Game in Win Over the Patriots

Mike Florio, Chris Simms give credit to Eberflus, Fields for dominant run game in win over the Patriots originally appeared on NBC Sports Chicago

Mike Florio and Chris Simms have high praise for Justin Fields and the Chicago Bears on Tuesday’s edition of “PFT Live.” 

The duo were particularly impressed by Chicago’s ability to control the narrative in yesterday’s 33-14 win over the New England Patriots in Boston. Bears head coach Matt Eberflus opted to use Fields for designed run plays and it paid off as the second-year quarterback ran for 82 yards, more than the entire Patriots team.

“Figure out what your players do well and do it,” Florio said of Eberflus’s change of strategy. “It sounds easy, but for some coaches it’s so difficult because it means they have to set aside their system, their plan, their ego. Screw that, I got a player who can run the ball effectively from the quarterback position. I’m going to embrace it, not shy away from it.”

Simms doubled down by emphasizing the importance of playing to a quarterback’s strengths.

“What’s the point of drafting some of these running quarterbacks if you don’t use them and run them,” he said.

While Fields is considered an effective scrambler, this was one of the first times the Bears have successfully integrated him into designed plays and they seem to have gained another offensive threat in the process. Chicago finished with 243 rushing yards, compared to New England’s 70. 

Simms said Monday night’s performance proved that Chicago has some pieces to build on going forward.

“I did not think [the offensive line] would maul the New England Patriots like they did last night, but it’s a big overpowering group and then … you add the two-headed monster of running backs, [David] Montgomery and [Khalil] Herbert are really good. And then you add in now the Justin Field’s designed quarterback runs, yeah it gives them something to build off.”

While this offensive scheme was certainly new to the Bears, the defensive gaps were nothing new to the Patriots who are currently 25th in the league for rushing yards allowed with 957. 

Florio argued that New England has long struggled with mobile quarterbacks and pointed to Lamar Jackson’s 107-yard rushing performance earlier this season as another blueprint for teams to dismantle the Patriots’ defense.

However, Florio acknowledged that many in the media – including him – didn’t give the Bears enough credit heading into the matchup to exploit the Patriots’ weaknesses. 

“It didn’t flicker on my radar screen because the last time we saw the Bears, they weren’t using Justin Fields in this way. So credit to them.”

The Bears entered Monday’s game on a 11-day hiatus, having last played in a 12-7 loss to the Washington Commanders on Thursday Night Football. Pressure was high for Chicago as they looked to avoid a four-game losing streak. Simms said it was evident that the Bears took advantage of the extended break and capitalized on the positive takeaways against the Commanders.

“There was a flow to the offense for the first time,” he said. “We saw little parts of it in the Washington game Thursday night … there was a smattering of it. Last night, we had real consistency.”

He also said Chicago was clearly the aggressor throughout yesterday’s game.

“They made the Patriots kind of bend to how they were playing and made them adjust and that’s where I can’t give them enough credit on both sides of the ball,” Simms said.

Simms and Florio agreed Monday’s win was much-needed for everyone in the Bears franchise, especially Fields. 

“This to me, not only is the best thing for your football team, gives you some creativity, it fits within the mold of how you want to play…  but also, it buys time and gives people hope in the Justin Fields conversation.”

Fields has battled injuries and struggled with consistency since the Bears drafted him from Ohio State in 2021. Despite a rocky rookie season, he was the presumed heir to the Chicago offense when the Bears cleaned house and hired Eberflus and general manager Ryan Poles to take over football operations.

Florio said this change of regime could lead some to believe that Fields isn’t the right guy for a new offensive scheme, but Simms countered by saying Monday’s game proved that there’s a path forward for this quarterback-coach combination.

“It gives [Fields] confidence, it gives the team confidence, it backs off the media and the fans and it buys [Fields] more time to say ‘Hey there’s positives while we work on you know, polishing up the passing game,” Simms said.

Florio said Monday’s win demonstrated a change in mentality as the Bears seemed to zero in on their advantages over the Patriots specifically.

“That’s what the difference can be when you treat a regular season game like a postseason game and you forget about whatever comes after it. 

A date with the Dallas Cowboys at AT&T Stadium on Sunday lies ahead for the Bears.