An NFL huddle can be a fiery place to work, but in the case of the Chicago Bears, wide receiver Darnell Mooney thinks his quarterback needs to turn up the heat.
Mooney spoke candidly with reporters on Wednesday, August 2, when he addressed a need for more “energy” and “juice” on the offensive side of the football, adding that all must start with Justin Fields. The receiver’s comments didn’t come off as critical of his quarterback. Instead, they sounded more like advice to a young leader for whom dramatic expressions of emotion perhaps don’t come naturally.
Here’s the full quote for those freaking out.
“I think it starts, one, with the quarterback. He has to come in the huddle, bring confidence in the huddle,” Mooney said, per video of the press conference shared on Twitter by Brendan Sugrue of USA Today’s BearsWire. “Understand that just with him, Justin is a calm guy. He has to understand that he is our leader and our guy, so we go as far as he goes, and he has to come in with that juice.”
Darnell Mooney, Justin Fields Share Advanced, Mature Professional Relationship
GettyChicago Bears wide receiver Darnell Mooney.
Mooney continued, saying that Fields does have fiery qualities within him and has sometimes utilized them to motivate both himself and his teammates. However, that is a personality trait Mooney would like to see his QB display more consistently.
“He does come in [with that energy]. Sometimes he’s just so locked in and so dialed into what he’s doing that he has to sometimes click in and [be] like, ‘Hey, I gotta get my guys jumping,'” Mooney added. “That’s why sometimes I’ll come up to him and hit him in the back of the head … and try to get him not so locked in, so he understands like hey, ‘We lookin’ at you to see how far we can go.’ Him being a young guy, it is what it is. This is his team. But he understands that he has to bring the juice every day.”
At the risk of playing popcorn psychologist, it is actually a positive sign that Fields can take constructive criticism from some of his closest teammates despite being the alpha in the locker room. That Mooney feels comfortable engaging with Fields in that way in the huddle and speaking freely about those interactions with the media is also a plus.
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GettyQuarterback Justin Fields of the Chicago Bears celebrates a touchdown during an NFL game against the San Francisco 49ers in September 2022.
Mooney and Fields have been teammates for the past two seasons, including in 2021 when the wideout produced career highs in catches (81), yards (1,055), yards per reception (13.0) and touchdowns (4) across 17 game appearances and 14 starts, per Pro Football Reference. Fields played in 12 of those 17 contests, starting 10 of them.
After an ankle injury robbed him of the end of his 2022 campaign, Mooney is back at training camp healthy. Fields sat out two contests last year due to injury and the Bears coaching staff is looking to transition him to a heavier passing load and lighter rushing duties this season. The QB attempted 318 passes last year compared to 160 rushing attempts, leading the NFL at 7.1 yards per carry.
Fields is a popular pick as an MVP dark horse in 2023, and it’s easy to see why. Chicago was competitive last season, despite finishing with a record of 3-14. The front office has made enough offseason improvements on both sides of the ball that an expected leap from Fields as a passer should catapult the Bears into the conversation for the league’s most improved team this upcoming season, assuming relative health.
One of the team’s biggest adds is wideout D.J. Moore, who Chicago procured as part of a trade that sent the Carolina Panthers the No. 1 pick in this year’s NFL Draft. Moore figures to usurp Mooney’s spot as Fields’ top option in the passing game. The two will be joined by receiver Chase Claypool, who Chicago acquired from the Pittsburgh Steelers at the 2022 mid-season trade deadline. The franchise also extended tight end Cole Kmet, who led the roster in all the major receiving statistical categories last season, on a four-year deal worth $50 million.
Behind a revamped offensive line, Fields should have all the weapons he needs to make a third-year jump and enter the upper echelon of NFL quarterbacks. The way he interacts with Mooney bodes well for the relationship building Fields must initiate with Moore and Claypool as newer additions to the offense. And the influx of energy on Fields’ part that Mooney suggested Wednesday could prove the last piece of the puzzle.
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Bears WR Sends Strong Message to Justin Fields on Leadership, Energy