Justin Fields’ Week 8 performance was even better than it looked

Justin Fields wasn't even supposed to start this past Sunday's game against the Cincinnati Bengals. The New York Jets appeared to be preparing veteran backup Tyrod Taylor to be the starter before a knee injury surprisingly ruled him out less than 24 hours before kickoff.

Suddenly, Fields was thrust back into the limelight just days after his public burial at the hands of team owner Woody Johnson, who essentially blamed his team's quarterback for the Jets' 0-7 start. It was a public humiliation ritual, and most understandably assumed that would be the end of Fields' time as a starter in New York.

But Taylor's injury opened the door ever so slightly for Fields to start again, and the former Ohio State quarterback did not let the opportunity go to waste. Sunday's 39-38 win over the Bengals featured one of the better performances of Fields' NFL career.

It may not have been quite as statistically impressive as his Week 1 masterclass, but given the circumstances and external factors at play, this was undoubtedly one of Fields' best career starts.

Justin Fields was outstanding in the Jets' Week 8 win over the Bengals

Fields finished 21-of-32 for 244 yards and a touchdown, adding 31 rushing yards. His 80.8 Pro Football Focus passing grade was the second-highest of his last 24 starts, trailing only his Week 1 performance against the Steelers.

Fields was able to capitalize on a near-perfect pass protection performance from the Jets' offensive line, but even on the six occasions he was pressured, he made the Bengals' defense pay.

The former Bears QB recorded two big-time throws in this game, both of which came when he was under pressure. In fact, his 93.9 PFF grade under pressure was not only the highest among all quarterbacks this week, but it was also a new single-game career high.

What's even more impressive is that, despite his offensive line giving him all day to sit in the pocket and find open receivers, Fields' average time to throw actually dropped dramatically to 2.92 seconds — his second-lowest mark of the season.

The Jets kept Fields clean, and he rewarded them with decisive throws, accurate passing, and timely reads. The fact that he punished the defense on the rare occasions he was pressured was the cherry on top of a brilliant afternoon for the former first-round pick.

Fields’ 0.348 EPA per play ranked 11th among all quarterbacks this week, just behind Josh Allen and Patrick Mahomes. His 0.425 EPA per play in the first half was top five in the league. It was one of the best quarterback games of the week across the NFL.

Of course, it helped that Fields was facing one of the worst defenses in football and benefited from a dominant offensive line performance. But credit where it’s due — Fields absolutely balled out on Sunday.

Only time will tell if he can replicate that performance against a much tougher Cleveland Browns defense after the bye, but he certainly did enough to buy himself more time as the starter.

That it came just days after his owner publicly decimated him and in a game he was never supposed to start only makes his effort that much more remarkable.