Heisman Watch: Justin Fields climbs to No. 2 in ESPN’s latest list

To say that Justin Fields has been absolutely dominant for the Ohio State Buckeyes through the first three games of the season would be quite an understatement. He’s played about the best football he could possibly play and while there have been plenty of ups and downs in different units throughout the scarlet and gray, there have also been two very noticeable consistencies: Fields and his two-headed monster at wide receiver (Chris Olave and Garrett Wilson) have been nothing short of incredible so far.

That became even more noticeable for the third consecutive game to start the fall. While continuing his amazing stat of accounting for more touchdowns (13) than incompletions (11), the junior completed 24-of-28 passes for 314 yards and five touchdowns and also added seven yards and a touchdown on the ground as well. Ohio State’s defense struggled against Rutgers, especially in the second half, but the Fields-led offense looked good once again.

For his dominance against the Scarlet Knights, Fields has moved up to the No. 2 spot in ESPN’s latest Heisman Watch, one spot better than he has been listed at early on in this season and a list that, for the first time this season, only includes quarterbacks.

Notable: Fields threw for 314 yards and five TDs (and rushed for another) in a 49-27 win over Rutgers on Saturday. He has only 11 incompletions through three games.

Quotable: “He is very accurate throwing downfield and throws effectively off-schedule and off-platform. There is some zip on his ball, and he displays a quick release.” — Todd McShay

Part of the reason Jones has the lead over Fields is due to Bama having already played six games while the Buckeyes have only played three. Keep in mind, the Crimson Tide have a 10-game regular-season schedule while Ohio State will only have eight games during the regular season, so, with that said, you can’t always lean on the total stats either. On that same topic, part of the reason Trevor Lawrence has fallen from No. 1 to No. 3 on the list is due to him missing Clemson’s last two games due to a positive COVID-19 test.

This season was always going to be a strange one given the pandemic, so having to decipher who will win the Heisman Trophy while the players will mostly be playing a different number of games will make the decision much tougher than it usually is.

That said, Fields has done all he has had to do through three games. If he continues at this pace, it might be hard to say no to the Ohio State gunslinger winning the Heisman this fall.

Heisman Watch:

1. QB Mac Jones, Alabama (55 points, four first-place votes): Six games, 139-of-177, 2,196 yards, 16 touchdowns, two interceptions
2. QB Justin Fields, Ohio State (47, two): Three games, 72-of-83, 908 yards, 11 touchdowns, zero interceptions; 27 carries, 57 yards, two touchdowns
3. QB Trevor Lawrence, Clemson (42, two): Six games, 135-of-191, 1,833 yards, 17 touchdowns, two interceptions; 29 carries, 71 yards, four touchdowns
4. QB Kyle Trask, Florida (27, two): FIve games, 125-of-182, 1,815 yards, 22 touchdowns, three interceptions; 22 carries, 70 yards
5. QB Zach Wilson, BYU (25, zero): Eight games, 165-of-220, 2,511 yards, 21 touchdowns, two interceptions; 50 carries, 158 yards, eight touchdowns