The best thing about preseason football is it's a chance to see the rookies in action against NFL opposition for the first time. It's often against second- and third-stringers, of course, but it's better than nothing. Four of the first-round quarterbacks debuted yesterday, including Chicago's Justin Fields.
The Bears have said Andy Dalton will open as the starter, but teams with a capable veteran in place always say that, and it doesn't always work out that way. The facts are that Aaron Rodgers or Patrick Mahomes sitting on the bench for a year or three seldom happens. First-round quarterbacks tend to play quickly. We know Trevor Lawrence and Zach Wilson will be Week 1 starters, and it's entirely possible that Mac Jones, Trey Lance and Justin Fields will be. Even if not, all will probably see the field sooner rather than later this season.
Fields replaced Dalton after two series yesterday, and it was a pretty positive debut: 14 of 20 for 142 yards and a touchdown. He also ran it 5 times for 33 yards and a touchdown, and that's what makes him especially interesting in fantasy terms. Fields called to mind Lamar Jackson or Michael Vick -- a guy who will be looking to pick up yards with his legs at the first sign of trouble in the pocket. That can be problematic (opponents will try to force him to beat them with his arm), but there's a nice payoff to that kind of game in fantasy leagues.
Over the past 20 years, six rookie quarterbacks have run for at least 500 yards, and five more have run for 350. Nearly half (5) of those dual-threat quarterbacks have used that production to finish in the top 12 at the position in their rookie seasons. Three other quarterbacks who ran for at least 200 yards as rookies ranked in the top 10 at their position. Each of those players also passed for very good numbers (Andrew Luck, Dak Prescott and Justin Herbert) but the running production helped a lot. Top-12 quarterbacks in bold.
| TOP RUSHING NUMBERS FROM ROOKIE PASSERS, 2001-PRESENT | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Year | Player | G | Pass | TD | Att | Run | TD | Rk |
| 2012 | Robert Griffin, Was. | 15 | 3200 | 20 | 120 | 815 | 7 | 10 |
| 2011 | Cam Newton, Car. | 16 | 4051 | 21 | 126 | 706 | 14 | 3 |
| 2018 | Lamar Jackson, Balt. | 16 | 1201 | 6 | 147 | 695 | 5 | 30 |
| 2018 | Josh Allen, Buff. | 12 | 2074 | 10 | 89 | 631 | 8 | 22 |
| 2006 | Vince Young, Ten. | 15 | 2199 | 12 | 83 | 552 | 7 | 12 |
| 2019 | Kyler Murray, Ariz. | 16 | 3722 | 20 | 93 | 544 | 4 | 6 |
| 2012 | Russell Wilson, Sea. | 16 | 3118 | 26 | 94 | 489 | 4 | 11 |
| 2017 | DeShone Kizer, Cle. | 15 | 2894 | 11 | 77 | 419 | 5 | 22 |
| 2014 | Blake Bortles, Jac. | 14 | 2908 | 11 | 56 | 419 | 0 | 21 |
| 2013 | Geno Smith, NYJ | 16 | 3046 | 12 | 72 | 366 | 6 | 20 |
| 2020 | Jalen Hurts, Phil. | 15 | 1061 | 6 | 63 | 354 | 3 | 36 |
| 2019 | Gardner Minshew, Jac. | 14 | 3271 | 21 | 67 | 344 | 0 | 21 |
| 2001 | Michael Vick, Atl. | 8 | 785 | 2 | 31 | 289 | 1 | 34 |
| 2016 | Dak Prescott, Dall. | 16 | 3667 | 23 | 57 | 282 | 6 | 10 |
| 2002 | David Carr, Hou. | 16 | 2592 | 9 | 59 | 282 | 3 | 24 |
| 2019 | Daniel Jones, NYG | 13 | 3027 | 24 | 45 | 279 | 2 | 20 |
| 2017 | Deshaun Watson, Hou. | 7 | 1699 | 19 | 36 | 269 | 2 | 27 |
| 2012 | Andrew Luck, Ind. | 16 | 4374 | 23 | 62 | 255 | 5 | 9 |
| 2015 | Marcus Mariota, Ten. | 12 | 2818 | 19 | 34 | 252 | 2 | 22 |
| 2017 | Mitchell Trubisky, Chi. | 12 | 2193 | 7 | 41 | 248 | 2 | 29 |
| 2020 | Justin Herbert, LAC | 15 | 4336 | 31 | 55 | 234 | 5 | 9 |
| 2010 | Tim Tebow, Den. | 9 | 654 | 5 | 43 | 227 | 6 | 34 |
| 2011 | Christian Ponder, Min. | 11 | 1853 | 13 | 28 | 219 | 0 | 28 |
| 2015 | Jameis Winston, T.B. | 16 | 4042 | 22 | 54 | 213 | 6 | 13 |
| 2012 | Ryan Tannehill, Mia. | 16 | 3294 | 12 | 49 | 211 | 2 | 24 |
| 2014 | Teddy Bridgewater, Min. | 13 | 2919 | 14 | 47 | 209 | 1 | 22 |
As a starter for Ohio State the last two season, Fields rushed for 867 yards and 15 touchdowns. He might not be that prolific a runner with Chicago, but it will be a big part of his game. Plenty of upside once he pushes Dalton to the sidelines.
--Andy Richardson