Justin Fields offered Jets fans a glimmer of hope in Sunday’s loss to the Steelers.
Gang Green’s offense also had a 394-yard performance.
What does Fields and the Jets offense have for an encore against the Bills in Week 2?
“You just want to keep improving,” Fields said on Wednesday. “I think Harrison [Phillips] said it in his interview, we are hoping it is the worst game we played all season.
“That’s the kind of mindset we want to have. And we want to continue to get better, continue to be better each and every game, and just continue to improve. I think this Sunday was a good way to start out the season, other than the loss. But as an offense, I think we played well.”
In his Jets debut, Fields had one of the better performances of his career against Pittsburgh, his former team. Not only was he effective using his legs to avoid pass rushers, but Fields was impressive through the air against a stout Steelers defense.
Fields completed 16-of-22 passes for 218 yards with a touchdown pass. He also rushed for 48 yards and two scores.
More importantly, Fields gave the Jets every chance to defeat the Steelers despite the 34-32 loss. He delivered incredible accuracy and touch on his passes, including his seven passes for 95 yards and a touchdown to Garrett Wilson. He also led the Jets to 32 points, a total they only achieved twice under ex-quarterback Aaron Rodgers last season.
The Jets’ reshuffled offensive line also helped Fields by giving him a clean pocket to throw passes. Right guard Alijah Vera-Tucker tore his triceps during practice last week and will miss the entire season. Joe Tippmann, who was the Jets center the previous two seasons, moved to Vera-Tucker’s spot and Josh Myers started at center.
Fields was sacked just once the entire game. They also helped the Jets rush for 182 yards and average 4.7 yards per attempt.
Fields did not resemble the same uneven player he was throughout training camp and the preseason. He was decisive, took care of the football, and accurately got the ball to his receivers consistently.
“I really enjoyed learning and being in this offense,” Fields said. “Learn from [Jets offensive coordinator] Tanner [Engstrand] and bounce things off of each other.
“I think he’s a great OC and great offensive mind and he’s going to get our players where they need to be.”
It was a change in the right direction for Fields, who had notoriously struggled with accuracy throughout his career. He fielded a 72.7% percentage, which is higher than his career percentage of 61.3.
When the Jets signed Fields to a two-year, $40 million contract in March, Jets head coach Aaron Glenn said the plan was to “let him play quarterback.” Meaning, they are not going to just let Fields be an athlete/gadget type of player that he was during his previous stops with the Bears and Steelers. They want Fields to have more responsibility and also to use his legs to create opportunities in the passing game for his receivers.
“That’s always been the plan to let him play quarterback,” Glenn said on Wednesday. “And whatever the game plan, what it consists of, he’s going to go out there and operate as best he can.
“I’ve said that from the very beginning, we’re going to let him play quarterback and we are going to see the things that he likes and we are also going to progress with the things that he is not good at, so he can get better in that aspect. This is still a work in progress and we are going to continue to work with him and I know just the type of person he is and how he’s always been, he’s going to do everything he can to perfect that. I look forward to seeing how he matures through this season.”
The Jets and the Fields will face another tough challenge this week when they play the Bills, who have won the AFC East for the previous five seasons. Buffalo is coming off a thrilling 41-40 victory against Baltimore in which the team came back from a 15-point deficit late in the fourth quarter.
“We are always ready to put up a lot of points,” Fields said. “But our goal is to put up one more point than them on Sunday. So that’s all it matters.”
