Good news for Bears fans hoping to see Justin Fields suit up against the Green Bay Packers on Sunday Night Football this week. According to Darnell Mooney, the rookie quarterback hasn’t appeared to be slowed down by his ribs injury recently.
“He hasn’t shown me any signs of (pain),” Mooney said. “The only thing一 the closest pain I’ve seen was during (the Ravens) game when he was walking around… He hasn’t been giving any signs that he’s hurt.”
Fields cracked his ribs in that Week 11 game against the Ravens, and hasn’t played since. Speaking on Monday, Nagy said that managing Fields’ pain from the injury would be the hurdle to clear before he plays again.
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“This is more of a pain thing for him right now,” Nagy said. “Medically, we’re never going to put him at risk medically. Never. So you can mark that down. If he is able to go and he is able to play and be the starter, it’s going to be because medically he’s cleared and then I think more than anything it’s pain. You know? It’s going to be a pain tolerance deal.”
For what it’s worth, Fields did not look hindered during the portions of practice that were open to the media last week. He was a limited participant in all three days of practice, too. But as has been noted repeatedly, Fields is a really tough guy. Just because he looks completely fine doesn’t mean he’s not experiencing pain. Throwing the ball around with no defenders chasing him is different from taking a shot from an edge rusher running full speed, too.
No matter where Fields is at in his recovery, Mooney reiterated that Fields has been excited to get back to work.
"He's been eager to get back every time we walk into the facility,” Mooney said. “He's ready to get back for sure."
