Justin Fields is a uniquely talented quarterback with a rare combination of size, speed, and a rocket arm.
However, one area he needs to improve is his progression scans. Like many young quarterbacks, he needs to expand his field vision and become a more comprehensive field reader.
So it was an intriguing idea for Jets’ new OC Tanner Engstrand to have the organization order GoPro cameras and install them on the QBs’ helmets in practice this spring.
“We said let’s give it a shot in rookie minicamp and see what it looks like,” Engstrand said. “And then we loved it and we just said let’s do it. And it’s been phenomenal for those guys.”
“By mounting a GoPro onto a player’s helmet, the players and coaches are given a unique perspective of the play—the actual angle that a player’s eyes are analyzing it from,” GoPro wrote on their website about the product.
Fields has enjoyed the experience.
“It’s my first time ever doing it – it’s definitely cool,,” Fields said. “You’re just hearing the play call again and going through, making sure you’re doing everything within the process of the play, so yeah, I like the GoPro a lot.”
UConn coach Jim Mora Jr. uses it with his quarterbacks in Storrs.
“GoPro is a great tool, and a huge part of our learning process,” said Mora. “Where you are looking first, who you are zeroing in on, what is catching your attention—these are the essential things that the GoPro picks up from the eyes of the player.
“In football, you are always thinking about where to look and where your eyes should be, and as a QB, you need to figure out your passing progression and where to throw it in real time. GoPro gives us the closest perspective to the actual eyes and head movements of the players and allows us to talk through the thought process of each look, each decision, and each play.”
The Jets certainly hope this helps Fields’ processing. It can’t hurt.
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