Last season, Chicago Bears quarterback Justin Fields had a breakout year, primarily due to his abilities as a rusher. Fields took a step forward as a passer from his rookie season to his sophomore campaign, but he was arguably the league's most electric threat on the ground.
He had three games with at least 100 rushing yards and four more with at least 80, averaged a league-best 7.1 yards per carry, and ripped off an incredible four runs of 55 or more yards -- three of which went for touchdowns. So, it stands to reason that he knows quite a bit about running quarterbacks.
Speaking with CBS Sports' Bryant McFadden, Fields revealed his top five running quarterbacks of all time. Obviously, the list included Fields himself. "I definitely think I am," Fields said. "I'm definitely in the top five." In no particular order, Fields said this is his top five:
- Mike Vick
- Cam Newton
- Lamar Jackson
- Justin Fields
- Steve Young
That's a pretty solid list!
"I'm definitely in the top 5." 👀👀@justnfields lists his top 5 running QBs in NFL history (@atcoveredpod) pic.twitter.com/H0Ixz7MRTL
— NFL on CBS 🏈 (@NFLonCBS) July 18, 2023
For what it's worth, Jackson owns the all-time single-season record for rushing yards by a quarterback with 1,206, while Fields is second with 1,143 and Vick is third with 1,039. Vick holds the career rushing yardage record at 6,109 yards, followed by Newton at 5,628. Jackson is in fifth (4,437), just ahead of Young (4,239). Also in the mix are Russell Wilson (third, 4,966) and Randall Cunningham (fourth, 4,928).
Meanwhile, Newton holds the record for rushing touchdowns in a single season with 14, and he is one of only two quarterbacks (along with Jalen Hurts) with multiple double-digit rushing touchdown seasons (Newton had three of them). Young isn't as high up on the single-season lists but as mentioned he is sixth all-time in rushing yards by a quarterback, and he is third in rushing touchdowns (43).
Fields himself is the only quarterback in history to rush for at least 1,000 yards and 8 touchdowns in the same season, and of course he did that in his lone full season as the starter to date. He certainly has the skill set to move himself into the mix as the greatest rushing quarterback of all time, assuming he's able to develop enough as a passer to keep the top job for the long term.
