The Chicago Bears scored one of the biggest steals of the 2021 NFL draft in trading up for quarterback Justin Fields with the 11th overall pick. It’s a move that was applauded around the league and has many wondering if Chicago finally found an answer to its quarterback woes.
Back in early April, former Bears quarterback Mark Sanchez appeared on the Pat McAfee Show, where he discussed the ridiculous rumors about Fields’ football intelligence and how it affected his draft stock. In case you needed any indication that it was absolutely bogus, according to Sanchez, Fields scored the highest rating ever on an aptitude test administered by sports psychologist, Dr. Goldman.
The test has been given to over 6,500 professional athletes, and Fields scored in the top 1%. This test focused on the reps needed to learn something and then the ability to recall that later.
For comparison sake, Patrick Mahomes and Josh Allen each scored a 108. Fields scored a 130.
Justin Fields with the highest mental aptitude test score…EVER pic.twitter.com/0wW1Nzufxp
— Chief (@BarstoolChief) April 30, 2021
Fields’ football intelligence is something that the Bears have really taken a liking to.
NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport detailed an exchange between Fields and Bears head coach Matt Nagy the night he was drafted, where Nagy brought up a formation that the two discussed during a pre-draft meeting, and “Fields spit it back perfectly, remembered everything about it.”
It’s unbelievable that, at one point, Fields’ ability to read a defense was questioned, something that was put to bed by watching the tape. This high aptitude test score only reaffirms that.
