USA Today via Reuters
Jan 1, 2021; New Orleans, LA, USA; Ohio State Buckeyes quarterback Justin Fields (1) celebrates after a touchdown pass against the Clemson Tigers during the first half at Mercedes-Benz Superdome. Mandatory Credit: Chuck Cook-USA TODAY Sports
USA Today via Reuters
Jan 1, 2021; New Orleans, LA, USA; Ohio State Buckeyes quarterback Justin Fields (1) celebrates after a touchdown pass against the Clemson Tigers during the first half at Mercedes-Benz Superdome. Mandatory Credit: Chuck Cook-USA TODAY Sports
Justin Fields had a productive day while playing for Chicago Bears in the NFL preseason clash against the Cleveland Browns. The 23-year-old youngster starred with three touchdowns in the 21-20 win for the Bears. Fields displayed excellent form in the run-up to the NFL. The Bears’ management are happy that they have found a special talent to start at the crucial position.
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However, in the playoff match, a Browns player collided and hit Fields on the head during the game. As the intention of the hit looked deliberate, Bears players got charged up and ran toward Browns players in anger. For a brief interval, the game got disrupted, before the referee, Brad Allen intervened and brought back things into control.
Defensive tactics against impact players like Justin Fields
As the game between the Browns and the Bears was going on intensely, several players got an adrenaline rush and played the matchup with emotion. As Fields had a good day, most of the opposition players targeted to stop him. They resorted to violent ways to stop the talented QB from scoring.
USA Today via Reuters
Jan 1, 2021; New Orleans, LA, USA; Ohio State Buckeyes quarterback Justin Fields (1) attempts a pass against the Clemson Tigers during the first half at Mercedes-Benz Superdome. Mandatory Credit: Chuck Cook-USA TODAY Sports
The foul tactics of the Browns invited a lot of reactions from the fans. Many of them questioned the reason why they focused on a single player and asked why they adopted a defensive approach. Meanwhile, fans also questioned the logic of not attempting to score quickly when the game was going on in a close manner.
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The defensive mindset also points to the strategy adopted by teams to slow down impact players. Such man-to-man markings to block a player from making bold moves are common in football. Teams use it to target the biggest threats on the field.
If the Bears OL can consistently give Justin Fields a pocket like this they are going to surprise some people this year pic.twitter.com/if2Gc8PpR5
— Chicago Football Connection (@CFCBears) August 28, 2022
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As the new season is approaching, will the major teams deploy this strategy against top stars like Tom Hardy, Aaron Rodgers, and Patrick Mahomes? There are high chances of such a move and the players will have a bigger role in keeping their bodies safe, apart from scoring, as the opposition is finding it easy to adapt to difficult rules.
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