Chicago Sports

Bears quarterback Justin Fields wants to be great.

“He wants this to be his franchise — he wants this to be his city,” quarterbacks coach Andrew Janocko said. “Just the way he works. Spend five minutes with the kid, and you know that he’s a dude. He’s a dog. He’s an alpha. You spend a little bit of time with him and you know. This guy, he wants to be it.”

Sunday, though, he won’t be the face of the franchise. He’ll be just like everyone else in a half-filled Soldier Field: sitting and watching one-time third-stringer Nathan Peterman play quarterback in the season finale against the Vikings.

The reason: the Bears’ roster and offense has failed so spectacularly this season to render playing Fields — the most popular, thrilling quarterback the Bears have had in two generations, if not longer — counterproductive.

The 3-13 Bears are incentivized to lose Sunday; if they do and the 2-13-1 Texans beat the Colts, the Bears will be awarded to the No. 1 overall pick in this year’s draft. The Bears have never had a 14-loss team — and haven’t picked first overall since 1947.

If they lose and the Colts win, the Bears will draft second. If the Bears win, they’ll draft no lower than fourth.

Fields was ruled out Wednesday with what the Bears called a hip injury. The Bears say team doctors wouldn’t have cleared him even if a playoff game awaited him Sunday, a claim that’s almost impossible to believe, given the difference in stakes.

Janocko said that Fields was “peeved” to be held out.

“Dude wants to play,” he said. “He’s a competitor.”

He won’t, though, because it doesn’t help the Bears.

“He’ll get something out of this performance by watching the other guys,” head coach Matt Eberflus said, unconvincingly.

Part of the Bears’ failure this season was by design, of course. They’re paying $93.2 million in dead cap money — to account for players no longer on the roster — and $30.6 million to players on injured reserve. Sunday’s active roster will cost $78.8 million, or about 37.5 percent of their total payroll. Only two players who play Sunday — guard Cody Whitehair and defensive lineman Justin Jones — have a cap hit of more than $4.5 million this season.

With a questionable roster, the Bears’ production plummeted after Thanksgiving.

In the last five weeks, only three teams have scored fewer points than the Bears’ 62 — less than half their total of 125 points in the five weeks before that. During the last five weeks, only the aforementioned Colts have a larger point differential than the Bears’ -67.

In Sunday’s 41-10 loss to the Lions, the Bears averaged 1.07 yards per pass, the worst mark of any NFL team this season. It was the fifth-worst average of the last five years — behind, among other games, Fields’ own 0.03 in the infamous 2021 loss to the Browns.

It was a mess.

“[Fields] and I talked in the locker room after [the Lions game],” Janocko said. “When we’re sitting in the locker room next year, we know what we want that game to be about next year and where we want to be when that game happens next year, and what we gotta do to get there. And also how we prevent something like that from happening again.

“So when we are in a scenario, that game is different next year. Then we’ll be ready to go for that, and answer the challenge.”

In the meantime, though, Fields has to watch.

The rest of us can turn away.

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The Bears have little to play for in their season finale against the Vikings on Sunday at Soldier. But it means something to Nathan Peterman.

The veteran backup quarterback will start in place of Justin Fields, who is out with a hip strain. It will be Peterman’s first NFL start since 2018 with the Bills — a 41-9 loss to the Bears in place of injured starter Josh Allen. It will be his fifth start in six NFL seasons.

“It’s an awesome opportunity. It’s been awhile,” Peterman said. “It’s been a lot of hard work putting into this season and a lot of ups and downs, obviously. But to go out and play football is a good thing. [I’m] excited for it.”

Peterman, a fifth-round draft pick by the Bills in 2017, signed with the Bears in the offseason and has appeared in two games. He threw an incompletion on a third-and-14 play in the fourth quarter against the Eagles after Fields suffered leg cramps. He turned out the lights in relief of Fields in a 35-13 loss to the Bills, completing 3-of-5 passes for 25 yards and an interception.

Peterman is 1-3 in four starts with the Bills. He beat the Colts in 2017, but suffered an injury in the third quarter, with Joe Webb finishing a 13-7 overtime win.

“Nate’s ready to go,” Bears offensive coordinator Luke Getsy said. “Nate’s a pro. I’m excited for Nate to have some opportunities for himself.”

Remember the North

Peterman is the second player from the 2017 Senior Bowl North team coached by John Fox and his staff to be signed by the Bears. Guard Jordan Morgan, a fifth-round draft pick from Kutztown (Pa.) spent one year on injured reserve in 2017.

Another North team player, Charlotte defensive tackle Larry Ogunjobi, agreed to terms with the Bears in free agency but failed his physical and signed with the Steelers.

Notable players on that North team coached by the Bears’ staff include Eastern Washington wide receiver Cooper Krupp, Temple linebacker Haason Reddick, Toledo running back Kareem Hunt and Temple guard Dion Dawkins.

Bears thankful

Spirits were lifted at Halas Hall with news that Bills safety Damar Hamlin was making progress in his recovery from cardiac arrest he suffered against the Bengals on Monday Night Football.

“It’s great,” coach Matt Eberflus said. “It’s really the power of prayer. I think obviously the good news certainly lifts a heavy heart, when you that I’d positive. I got a text from Leslie Frazier [the Bills’ defensive coordinator], who’s a good friend of mine, [Friday] morning. It was great to hear from him. It was really good.”

Injury report

Rookie cornerback Kyler Gordon (groin) is questionable for Sunday’s game against the Vikings after being limited in practice Friday.

Cornerback Jaylon Jones (concussion) is out.

Defensive linemen Angelo Blackson (illness) and Terrell Lewis (personal) are questionable. Reserve linebacker Sterling Weatherford (illness) is out.

Previously, guards Teven Jenkins (neck) and Michael Schofield and cornerback Josh Blackwell (undisclosed) were put on injured reserve.

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Friday, January 6, 2023

BIG NORTHERN

Byron at Rock Falls, 7:00

Rockford Christian at Oregon, 7:30

Rockford Lutheran at North Boone, 7:00

CATHOLIC LEAGUE – BLUE

Leo at Loyola, 6:30

CENTRAL SUBURBAN – NORTH

Niles North at Vernon Hills, 7:00

CENTRAL SUBURBAN – SOUTH

Glenbrook North at Glenbrook South, 7:00

Maine South at Evanston, 3:00

Niles West at New Trier, 7:00

CHICAGO PREP

Christ the King at Holy Trinity, 7:00

DU KANE

Wheaton North at Geneva, 6:00

DU PAGE VALLEY

Naperville Central at DeKalb, 7:00

Naperville North at Metea Valley, 7:00

Waubonsie Valley at Neuqua Valley, 7:00

EAST SUBURBAN CATHOLIC

Benet at St. Patrick, 7:00

Joliet Catholic at Carmel, 7:00

Marist at Nazareth, 7:00

Notre Dame at St. Viator, 7:00

FOX VALLEY

Burlington Central at Cary-Grove, 7:30

ILLINOIS CENTRAL EIGHT

Herscher at Streator, 6:45

Lisle at Wilmington, 7:00

Manteno at Peotone, 7:00

Reed-Custer at Coal City, 6:45

INDEPENDENT SCHOOL

Francis Parker at Northridge, 6:00

University High at Morgan Park Academy, 4:30

INTERSTATE EIGHT

Morris at Plano, 7:00

Ottawa at LaSalle-Peru, 7:00

Sandwich at Rochelle, 7:00

Sycamore at Kaneland, 7:00

KISHWAUKEE RIVER

Johnsburg at Harvard, 7:0

LITTLE TEN

Hiawatha at DePue, 7:00

Indian Creek at Newark, 7:00

Leland at LaMoille, 5:30

Somonauk at Hinckley-Big Rock, 6:45

METRO SUBURBAN – BLUE

Chicago Christian at Timothy Christian, 7:30

IC Catholic at St. Francis, 6:45

METRO SUBURBAN – RED

Elmwood Park at St. Edward, 7:00

McNamara at Westmont, 7:30

Ridgewood at Aurora Central, 7:30

MID-SUBURBAN – EAST

Buffalo Grove at Wheeling, 6:00

Hersey at Prospect, 6:00

MID-SUBURBAN – WEST

Hoffman Estates at Barrington, 6:00

Palatine at Fremd, 6:00

Schaumburg at Conant, 6:00

NIC – 10

Freeport at Belvidere North, 7:30

Harlem at Jefferson, 7:15

Hononegah at Auburn, 7:30

Rockford East at Boylan, 7:15

NORTH SUBURBAN

Lake Zurich at Lake Forest, 7:00

Stevenson at Zion-Benton, 7:00

Waukegan at Warren, 7:00

NORTHEASTERN ATHLETIC

Harvest Christian at Our Lady Sacred Heart, 6:00

Alden-Hebron at Schaumburg Christian, 7:30

RIVER VALLEY

Donovan at Tri-Point, 7:00

Gardner-So. Wilmington at Beecher, 7:00

Grace Christian at Clifton Central, 7:00

Grant Park at Momence, 7:00

Illinois Lutheran at St. Anne, 7:00

SOUTH SUBURBAN – RED

Eisenhower at Oak Lawn, 6:30

Reavis at Richards, 1:30

SOUTHLAND

Bloom at Crete-Monee, 6:00

Kankakee at Thornwood, 6:30

Thornridge at Rich, 6:30

SOUTHWEST PRAIRIE – CROSSOVER

Minooka at Joliet West, 6:30

Oswego at Plainfield Central, 6:30

Oswego East at Romeoville, 6:30

Plainfield North at Plainfield East, 6:30

West Aurora at Plainfield South, 6:30

Yorkville at Joliet Central, 6:30

SOUTHWEST SUBURBAN – CROSSOVER

Bolingbrook at Andrew, 6:00

Homewood-Flossmoor at Bradley-Bourbonnais, 7:

Lockport at Stagg, 6:00

Sandburg at Lincoln-Way Central, 6:30

TRI-COUNTY

Henry-Senachwine at Dwight, 7:00

Roanoke-Benson at Marquette, 7:00

Seneca at Lowpoint-Washburn, 7:30

Woodland at Putnam County, 7:00

UPSTATE EIGHT

Glenbard East at Elgin, 7:00

Glenbard South at Streamwood, 7:00

Larkin at Bartlett, 7:00

South Elgin at East Aurora, 6:30

West Chicago at Fenton, 7:00

WEST SUBURBAN – GOLD

Hinsdale South at Addison Trail, 7:30

Morton at Proviso East, 6:00

Willowbrook at Leyden, 6:00 (at West)

WEST SUBURBAN – SILVER

Downers Grove North at Lyons, 6:30

Oak Park-River Forest at Proviso West, 6:00

York at Glenbard West, 7:30

NON CONFERENCE

Amboy at Earlville, 7:00

Christian Life at Christian Liberty, 7:30

Dixon at South Beloit, 7:00

Downers Grove South at Hinsdale Central, 7:30

Harlan at St. Francis de Sales, 5:00

Lake Forest Academy at Latin, 6:00

Legal Prep at Providence-St. Mel, 5:00

Lycee Francais at Unity Christian, 6:00

Marengo at Huntley, 7:00

Marian Catholic at Taylorville, 7:00

Midland at Lexington, 7:00

Ogden at Dunbar, 3:30

Orr at Fenwick, 6:00

Pritzker at Chicago Academy, 10:00

Raby at Amundsen, 1:00

Richmond-Burton at Crystal Lake Central, 7:00

St. Charles East at Marmion, 7:00

Wauconda at Dundee-Crown, 7:00

ERIE CATHEDRAL PREP (PA)

De La Salle vs. Cathedral Prep (PA), 7:30

LA PORTE CIVIC AUDITORIUM (IN)

Simeon vs. Indianapolis Cathedral (IN), 4:00

UPLIFT

Third Place, 12:00

Championship, 1:45

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The Chicago Bears rule three out

The Chicago Bears are getting ready to finish their season on Sunday against the Minnesota Vikings. Head coach Matt Eberflus said earlier this week the Bears ruled out quarterback Justin Fields for the game. The Bears will start Nathan Peterman and are looking to end the season on a low note so they can keep a higher draft position.

According to the injury report released Friday, the Bears ruled three out for the contest. Three more will be questionable against the Vikings. Nathan Peterman and company should be purposefully shorthanded on Sunday, so the Bears’ chances of dropping to 3-14 are high.

Bears out vs. Vikings

QB Justin Fields, hipDB Jaylon Jones, concussionLB Sterling Weatherford, illness

Bears questionable vs. Vikings

DL Angelo Blackson, illnessDB Kyler Gordon, groinDL Terrell Lewis, personal

Chicago Bears record on the line

The Bears have one record on the lie Sunday after they sabotaged any chance of Fields earning the single-season rushing record for a quarterback. The Bears currently are tied for the franchise most losses in a single season. A loss to the Vikings could make first-year general manager Ryan Poles and Eberflus peerless in the depths of Bears’ defeat.

We don’t know if Poles knows how to draft, find wide receivers, or build a team, and we don’t know if Eberflus can coach. But we do understand those two know how to lose. It should make for an enjoyable pre-draft season.

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The Bears don’t have many key players left as they prepare to face the Vikings in the final game of the season Sunday, but a few are expected to be available.

Rookie safety Jaquan Brisker and wide receiver Chase Claypool practiced in full Friday and should be available to play Sunday. Rookie cornerback Kyler Gordon was limited and listed as questionable.

Claypool, who has been fighting a knee injury for over a month, practiced in full all week and would only miss the game if the Bears decide to hold him out as part of an organizational strategy. They’re already sitting quarterback Justin Fields because he has a hip strain, though Fields played through that injury last week against the Lions.

Gordon was limited in practice Thursday because of a groin injury, but returned Friday. Brisker missed Wednesday for a personal reason but has practiced both days since.

The Bears have the NFL’s second-worst record at 3-13 and are an eight-point underdog against the Vikings. If the Bears lose and the Texans beat the Colts, the Bears would secure the No. 1 pick in the upcoming draft.

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When Pat Boyle was at Michigan State, he initially intended to be a news reporter. But later someone asked him whether he wanted to cover fires, shootings and other tragedies or play to his sports fandom. After going back and forth in his head, he chose to become a sports reporter.

He eventually discovered that sports and tragedies can intersect. At WTOG in Tampa-St. Petersburg, Boyle was anchoring the sports segment when someone told him through his IFB microphone that the newscast was going to pick up KTLA’s feed of a car that was believed to be carrying O.J. Simpson.

“While you get into sports to cover sports, you end up covering stories like that, Larry Nasser, Jerry Sandusky, and you do have to have the skill set that a news anchor has,” said Boyle, the NBC Sports Chicago host for Blackhawks pregame and postgame shows. “[News anchors] may be expecting it more than a sports broadcaster does, but at times you’ll end up going down those roads.”

That’s why Boyle took great interest in how ESPN covered Bills safety Damar Hamlin’s on-field cardiac arrest during the game against the Bengals on “Monday Night Football.” He watched all of the network’s coverage, from reporter Lisa Salters to the studio crew of Suzy Kolber, Booger McFarland and Adam Schefter to “SportsCenter with Scott Van Pelt,” which included former NFL player Ryan Clark.

“I was interested to see because I do put myself [in their place]. How would I have done this?” Boyle said. “They should be commended on how they handled it because in this day and age, where information is everywhere and there’s people out there trying to trip you up with false information, top to bottom they really did an outstanding job in reporting something that they had no idea was coming.”

No one on the “MNF” crew, from announcers Joe Buck and Troy Aikman on down, could’ve been prepared for what unfolded. The crew was ready to call a game. So the network’s shift was laudable, though understandably not perfect. The excessive commercial breaks immediately after Hamlin collapsed following his tackle of wide receiver Tee Higgins bothered many viewers. But it was an understandable tack considering the horrifying scene and scant information available.

Bears radio voice Jeff Joniak has been on the call for a number of scary scenes, such as the hit on former wide receiver Johnny Knox that essentially ended his career and the near-touchdown catch by former tight end Zach Miller that almost cost him his leg. But he had never seen anything like what happened to Hamlin, and he appreciated how Buck and Aikman handled it.

“Watching their reactions and sincerity, the compassion,” Joniak said. “You’ve gotta make sure you have some awareness and be respectful of the situation. The game is unimportant at that point. There’s no discussion about any of that.”

Buck eventually shared that Hamlin received CPR. Kolber, McFarland and Schefter focused on the humanity of the situation, appearing teary-eyed and speaking in practically hushed tones. McFarland was the first to call for the game to be suspended. The network was deliberate, eschewing speculation despite information appearing on Twitter from reporters and Hamlin’s marketing representative.

“ESPN didn’t go with any of that,” Boyle said. “I thought that was great journalism because it’s not about being first, it’s about being accurate and factual. When you’re covering something like this, and it’s over several hours, it’s easy to slip and say, Let’s mention this to further the story. I thought they were very careful in waiting for official statements to dictate what they were going to say.”

Salters, who teared up once on the air, showed what a good sideline reporter can add to a broadcast. She shared how players were reacting and described the interaction between Bills coach Sean McDermott, Bengals coach Zac Taylor and officials. The one time Salters presumed something was when she saw players out of uniform outside their locker room, indicating the game likely wouldn’t resume.

“Lisa Salters was amazing,” Joniak said. “It’s OK to show emotion because you’re keeping it real. It is a moving moment. It’s the last thing you ever want to see in any sporting activity where somebody’s in a life-and-death mode. You have to be genuine. It has to be organic, and it was for sure.”

When the game was called and Van Pelt and Clark took over, enough time had passed for reporters Ben Baby and Coley Harvey to arrive at the hospital and appear on the air. Exemplifying the chaotic nature of the situation, Van Pelt asked a question twice, then admitted his mistake and apologized. He otherwise was exceptional in steering the coverage and maintaining the appropriate tone.

Clark shined sharing the perspective of his own life-threatening event. The former Steelers safety has sickle cell trait, which caused him to be hospitalized after playing in Denver in 2007. The altitude deprived his major organs of oxygen, and his spleen and gall bladder were removed. Clark told the story of coach Mike Tomlin refusing to let him play in the Steelers’ subsequent trips to Denver.

It all proved Boyle’s point that news events can find sports observers when they least expect it, and they are capable of handling it. Joniak gave a reason why.

“We are in many cases trained reporters,” he said. “I don’t think it’s as big a stretch as you might think. We’re story-tellers painting a picture, and in this particular case, it was a very unnerving one, for sure.”

Remote patrol

In the Nielsen fall ratings book for the key demographic of men ages 25-54, The Score’s “Bernstein & Holmes” show – with recurring co-host Leila Rahimi – remained the most-listened-to sports talk show in the market, earning a 5.6 rating. Among all stations in the 10 a.m.-2 p.m. time slot, it held its No. 2 rank from the summer book, behind Mexican station WOJO-FM (9.0).

From 2 to 6 p.m., ESPN 1000’s “Waddle & Silvy” inched ahead of The Score’s “Parkins & Spiegel” 4.8-4.7, ranking third and fourth, respectively. The shows were tied in the summer book at 4.1.

The Score came out ahead during prime listening hours, from 6 a.m. to 7 p.m. Monday through Friday, ranking third at 5.0. ESPN 1000 ranked fifth at 4.2 but jumped from a 3.6 and No. 9 ranking in the summer.

With both stations firmly in the top five in the market during prime listening, Chicago sports talk maintains a strong listenership.

NFL games expected to air Sunday in the Chicago market: Vikings at Bears, noon, Fox-32 (Kenny Albert, Jonathan Vilma); Patriots at Bills, noon, Ch. 2 (Jim Nantz, Tony Romo); Cowboys at Commanders, 3:25 p.m., Fox-32 (Kevin Burkhardt, Greg Olsen); Giants at Eagles, 3:25 p.m., Ch. 2 (Ian Eagle, Charles Davis).

Mark Schanowski will fill in for Adam Amin on NBC Sports Chicago’s broadcast of Jazz-Bulls at 7 p.m. Saturday. Amin will call the Buccaneers-Falcons game Sunday for Fox.

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Bears receiver Chase Claypool said he was tired of losing.

His sideline outburst Sunday prompted exchanges with receivers coach Tyke Tolbert and eventually quarterback Justin Fields, who tried to calm him down in the third quarter of a a 41-10 blowout loss.

Claypool left the postgame locker room as the media was entering. Speaking for the first time about the incident Thursday, he said he had grown tired of offensive struggles against the Lions.

“I was all fired up because we can’t lose that bad, ever,” he said. “We have to have a little bit more pride, a little bit more heart, so it don’t happen again.”

The Bears went three-and-out on six of seven possessions starting in the first quarter and stretching to the fourth; the outlier was a one-play drive that ended in an interception.

“We have to realize when it’s not OK to go three-and-out,” Claypool said. “We gotta act that way. If we go three-and-out, it can’t just be OK. And it isn’t. But we gotta really have that fire and energy and realize that, ‘Yo, it’s time to go.'”

He claimed it had nothing to do with his own production. He had no catches on one target Sunday.

“I’ll never get frustrated and say, ‘Throw me the ball more, throw me the ball,'” he said.

Fields diffused the situation on the sideline, saying he told Claypool that his outburst was “not helping the team.” Claypool said their discussion ended with “mutual respect.”

Tolbert told him after the game that the outburst, which featured Claypool tossing his helmet down, was inappropriate.

“I said, ‘Look, you’re a passionate guy. I love your passion. Passion is what makes you who you are. You just have to channel it the right way,'” Tolbert said. “Everybody wants to be doing better on offense. Everybody wants to score more points and do a lot of things. But we’re all professionals. And we all have to approach things in a professional way.”

Claypool has struggled to contribute since the Bears traded a second-round pick to the Steelers for him Nov. 1. Hampered by a knee injury suffered last month, Claypool played 126 snaps with Fields at quarterback this season, an incredibly small number. By contrast, he played 125 snaps over his final two games with the Steelers.

With Fields playing quarterback — he sat out the Jets game with a separated left shoulder in Week 11 — Claypool was targeted only 18 times. He caught 10 of those passes for 60 yards.

Claypool, who is eligible for a contract extension this offseason, said he plans to throw with Fields during the offseason, either in California, Florida or Georgia.

“He’s one of those guys that hates losing just as much as I do,” Claypool said. “We see common ground on that. It’s good to know there’s a guy throwing you the ball who wants to win.”

They just express it differently.

“Even if it was 31-10 or whatever in the third quarter, we can still win that game,” Claypool said. “You see what the Vikings did down 33-0 at halftime [in a 39-36 win over the Colts]. We’re always in every game, no matter what the score is, for the most part until that final whistle blows.

“So it’s like, I just want to feel that belief. I want to feel it. We’re a good team. We’re going to be a good team next year. But we have to be real uncomfortable with losing.”

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Thursday, January 5, 2023

NIC – 10

Guilford at Belvidere, 7:00

PUBLIC LEAGUE WHITE-SOUTH

Fenger at Vocational, 11:00

SOUTH SUBURBAN – CROSSOVER

Argo at Lemont, 7:00

Evergreen Park at Bremen, 6:00

NON CONFERENCE

Crane at Bulls Prep, 3:30

Faith Christian at Christian Life, 8:00

Gage Park at DuSable, 5:00

Gary Lighthouse (IN) at Harlan, 7:30

Holy Trinity at Lycee Francais, 6:00

Leo at University High, 6:30

Marquette at Yorkville Christian, 7:00

Providence at Southland, 7:00

Richmond-Burton at Marian Central, 7:00

Sandwich at Genoa-Kingston, 7:00

Urban Prep-Englewood at Phillips, 5:00

UPLIFT

Noble Street vs. Chicago Tech, 3:30

Senn vs. Legal Prep, 5:15

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Bears offensive coordinator Luke Getsy is as obsessed with the process of developing Justin Fields as most people are with the production that quantifies his individual success.

“As long as we see growth, we know we’re on the right path,” Getsy said.

Getsy saw that growth in the first four weeks of the season, when Fields’ numbers were not just poor but discouraging and seeming like a red flag — Fields completed 50.8% of his passes for 117.8 yards per game and a 58.7 passer rating.

He responded with marked improvement — though hardly prolific production — completing 65.7% of his passes for 169.6 yards per game and a 96.9 passer rating in his next 10 games.

Still, Fields finished the 2022 season with modest-at-best passing numbers. His 60.4% completions ranks 31st in the NFL. His 85.2 passer rating is 26th. Even his most impressive statistic — 7.1 yards per attempt — is 17th.

And Fields’ 149.5 yards per game is not only last in the NFL, it’s the second-lowest average for a second-year quarterback drafted in the first round in the last 30 seasons. He averaged more passing yards per game (180.0) as a starter in Matt Nagy’s offense last year.

But in the context of the offense and Fields’ development, Getsy saw progress.

“That’s what I saw every day [during the first month]. I continue to see that,” Getsy said. “

As we go into next year, now he’s had this experience. He’s had opportunities to get more comfortable with the communication of the system. Hopefully he gets more comfortable with the people around him.

“Any time you get that cohesiveness of the unit, and knowing what the culture looks like — and he’s the leader of that culture — I think all that is promising stuff.”

Asked for examples of Fields’ growth, Getsy pointed mostly to Fields’ maturity and comfort with his position as a team leader — even to Getsy’s amused annoyance.

“Just [look at] his press conferences at the end of the year — he’s sitting there telling you about every single play,” Getsy said. “He told you we had a trick play. I’m like, ‘C’mon, dude, you can’t do that. You can’t go public and say a trick play.’ Becoming a pro, the leadership. He got challenged last week with what happened with Chase [Claypool] on the sideline and he handled that. That’s him becoming the leader of the football team and being a great pro and consistent every day. I think that’s the most important thing.

“Then all the other stuff — those guys see every day on the practice field. They see him getting better every day. The results of it, the statistics that everyone’s looking for, those will come. And we know that. The most important thing is that we continue to see growth.”

Getsy’s confidence in Fields is strong enough that he dared to compare him to Aaron Rodgers — whom Getsy coached with the Packers the previous three seasons — when Getsy was asked about Fields developing a knack for knowing when to extend a play and when to throw it away.

“That’s part of the uniqueness of coaching guys that are special in a bunch of different ways,” Getsy said. “I was fortunate to coach a guy at my last stop [Rodgers] that he doesn’t see things like everybody else. So you work through that, like, ‘Why did you do it?’ He communicates that more clearly than any human being in the world.

“What’s cool about Justin is that he’s kind of on that path. He has his whys. He sees what he sees and he’s able to communicate that. … He’s making a decision for a reason, so those conversations have been really good.”

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Alarm bells kept ringing in Caleb Jones’ head every time he pushed deep into the offensive zone Tuesday.

As a defenseman, he indeed would’ve been far out of position. But he repeatedly reminded himself he was actually playing forward. Technically, he was the Hawks’ third-line left winger.

“There’s a few times on the clips I could see myself backing up and not coming up,” he said Thursday, laughing. “I started skating backwards — that was the defenseman in me, for sure. But better safe than sorry in that situation. That was my mindset: I’d rather not be too aggressive and just come back.”

Jones was originally going to be a healthy scratch against the Lightning. He wasn’t planning to go out for warmups — and therefore not doing his usual pregame stretching — when the Hawks let him know around 6:30 p.m. that they’d need him to dress.

And he didn’t realize that playing meant playing forward — essentially in the place of Tyler Johnson, who’d come down sick — until coach Luke Richardson told him at the last minute.

“I said I could probably play a couple shifts up there,” Jones said. “Then before the first puck drop, Luke said, ‘I’ll probably just keep you up there the whole game.’ It was definitely a new experience, but I made a couple good defensive plays and had a couple O-zone shifts.

“I know our ‘D’-zone [system], like what our forwards are supposed to do and what their jobs are, so I didn’t feel too nervous about any positional stuff. … But when you just have to go in and play, sometimes you can actually have a good game, not thinking too much.”

He ended up logging 13:48 ice time over 15 shifts with decent results. The Hawks outshot the Lightning 5-3 during his five-on-five ice time; neither team scored during it. Richardson praised him for taking advantage of the opportunity and doing “whatever we asked him to do.”

Roster puzzle

It’s probably for the best, though, that Jones won’t have to masquerade as a forward a second time.

The Hawks’ roster remains in heavy flux entering Friday against the Coyotes, but not in enough flux to necessitate that degree of creativity.

The Hawks called up forwards Lukas Reichel and Brett Seney from the AHL, and both will be in the lineup Friday no matter what. It’ll be Reichel’s second appearance of the season, presenting another chance for the top prospect to finally translate his offensive upside to the NHL. He’ll be playing wing, not center.

Seney isn’t exactly a prospect at age 26 but has earned this opportunity nonetheless. The former Devils and Maple Leafs depth winger is the AHL’s second-leading scorer this season with 38 points in 32 games. Rockford coach Anders Sorensen said Seney plays at a fast pace and gets to the net well.

Patrick Kane, meanwhile, is a “maybe” for Friday; he’ll test out his lower-body injury in the morning before doctors make a determination. Either way, though, it doesn’t sound like a major long-term issue, which would’ve been the worst-case scenario after he didn’t return for the third period Tuesday.

“There was no sense to flare it up today,” Richardson said of Kane’s injury. “It’s just settling down. If he can…let the inflammation get out of there and if he feels good [Friday], he’ll definitely try and push through. So that’s good.”

Johnson returned to practice Thursday, but Andreas Athanasiou has now contracted his illness and missed practice because of it.

And MacKenzie Entwistle and Jujhar Khaira were retroactively placed on injured reserve with right wrist and lower back injuries, respectively, although both are eligible to be activated at any time. Entwistle and Jarred Tinordi (facial surgery) skated individually Thursday; Khaira did not.

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