Will Justin Fields play this Week? Bears QB’s status explored for Week 9

Justin Fields has missed the previous two games for the Chicago Bears with a dislocated right thumb, and it looks like he could well be out for another game. Head coach Matt Eberflus doesn't think his starter quarterback will be ready to go against the New Orleans Saints.

Undrafted rookie Tyson Bagent has been the starter for the past two games. He led the Bears in an incredible 30-12 win over the Las Vegas Raiders in Week 7, but was unable to do the same against the Los Angeles Chargers a week later, losing 30-13 on Sunday Night Football.

While it's unclear when Justin Fields will be able to return, it's unlikely he'll be out for much longer. The Chicago Bears opted against putting the quarterback on the short-term injured reserve when he injured his thumb, which means they believe he'll be able to play again in less than four weeks.

What happened to Justin Fields?

The quarterback dislocated his thumb during the defeat to the Minnesota Vikings and was unable to come back to the game due to the pain. He was inactive in the Bears' games against the Las Vegas Raiders and the Los Angeles Chargers.

Even though he might miss the next game, there are no plans for Chicago to place him on the short-term injured reserve. Since it comes to pain tolerance, he should be back playing as soon as possible.

The team is sitting at a 2-6 record, so there's no point in rushing Fields back since there's nothing much left to play for. Undrafted rookie Tyson Bagent took over from Fields and was solid, but unspectacular. It's clear that he's no threat for Justin Fields' starter spot, even though he was able to lead the team to a win in his first game.

This is another season where the Chicago Bears will be disappointing after spending a lot of money in the offseason and creating lots of hope among the fanbase. The lesson learned during this season is that Justin Fields isn't their guy, but with two high first-round picks, they can go after a new franchise quarterback.