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Just so we’re clear after last week’s confusion, Justin Fields was the Chicago Bears starting quarterback Sunday afternoon at Soldier Field. The team made that announcement Saturday evening, putting the rookie behind the steering wheel for a 24-14 defeat of the Detroit Lions.

Offensive coordinator Bill Lazor, for what it’s worth, served as Fields’ GPS. And by GPS, we mean Lazor called the plays against the Lions.

Coach Matt Nagy acknowledged that adjustment shortly after the win.

“Bill did a great job today,” Nagy said.

The Lazor-Fields combo contributed to a tone-setting 12-play, 75-yard touchdown march to open the game, a drive that snapped a 20-possession drought without an offensive TD. The Bears chose to take the ball after winning the coin flip, committed to the run right away and quickly found a healthy balance.

“We had a great rhythm,” Fields said.

Added Nagy: “Guys were making plays. We got the running game going. And then we were effective in the red zone. … If you could wake up in the morning and say, ‘I wish this could happen on the first drive,’ that’s what happened.”

Off the Bears went, building a 21-0 lead early in the second half and coasting. Yet if the victory seemed to be an encouraging get-right triumph — a much-needed home win over a winless division opponent — it’s hard to forecast how much carryover there may be heading into the demanding six-game stretch that starts with next weekend’s trip to Las Vegas to face the Raiders.

After the win, Nagy wouldn’t say whether Fields would remain the starting quarterback in Week 5 or whether he’s still inclined to turn back to veteran Andy Dalton once the bone bruise in Dalton’s left knee is healed.

“We’ll see where he’s at,” Nagy said.

Nagy also added to his praise of Lazor with a few confusing and somewhat awkward footnotes.

“Ultimately it goes through me,” he said. “Everything we do, regardless of who’s calling this or who’s calling that, it goes through me.”

Nagy added that he would be averse to addressing any further questions about who’s handling the play-calling responsibilities.

“Whatever it is I need to do to try to be the best head coach for the Chicago Bears, I don’t care,” Nagy said. “I just want us to have the best opportunity to win.”

That’s the thing with these Bears. Even on afternoons that run smoothly with incredible energy pumping through Soldier Field, there’s enough commotion and hardship on the periphery to muddle things.

The outside uncertainty surrounding the quarterback and play caller roles seems like it might linger for a bit.

Furthermore, after a game in which the Bears ran for 188 yards, they marched into Sunday night feeling anxious about a left knee injury to top running back David Montgomery. Montgomery turned 23 carries into 106 yards and two touchdowns, easily the most important catalyst of the offense’s revival. But he left with 11 minutes remaining after his knee buckled on a 5-yard run.

“When he got tackled, I saw his facial expression,” receiver Darnell Mooney said. “Then I heard him and I’m like, ‘Oh, man.’ So I was literally bringing the trainers over as fast as I could, waving my hand.”

An NFL Network report suggested Montgomery might have hyperextended his knee. An MRI on Monday should provide clarity. Adding to the concerns, fellow running back Damien Williams (eight carries, 55 yards, one TD) didn’t finish the game either after injuring a quadriceps in the fourth quarter.

So what did the Bears accomplish Sunday? For starters, they got their clunky offense back into a groove after a miserable outing a week earlier in Cleveland. The Bears piled up 373 yards and 24 points, both season highs, and had as many offensive touchdowns in the first 35 minutes as they had in the first three games combined.

Fields looked far more comfortable and confident, completing 11 of 17 passes for 209 yards, including a 64-yard dart to Mooney on the Bears’ second touchdown drive.

“Justin had to focus today on winning this football game and getting better,” Nagy said. “I think he did both those things.”

The offensive line bounced back, too, allowing just one sack and helping pave the way for the Bears’ third-best rushing output during the Nagy era.

“It’s nice to have games like this where the hard work pays off,” center Sam Mustipher said.

Certainly, it never hurts to face a second-rate defense. But there were also specific goals coming into the day that the Bears managed to accomplish.

Said Nagy: “When you come out of a game like last week in Cleveland, you say to yourself, ‘Did we have an identity?’ In general, I would say the answer to that was no. So whatever the result was today, we were going to come out of this thing with an identity. I think that’s important.”

To that end, the Bears opened the game with a 9-yard Montgomery run out of a three-tight-end set. It seemed to be a statement.

The Bears then kept the ball on the ground for nine plays on that scoring march.

“Getting the run game going like we did today, it definitely opens up play action,” Fields said.

By day’s end, Fields had four completions of at least 25 yards, with Mooney contributing a career-high 125 yards on five receptions. The running attack, meanwhile, produced nine gains of at least 9 yards.

Undeniably, everything looked better.

But the Bears now have to dive into their review of the win with clear eyes and honest assessments, pinpointing the biggest reasons for their improvement, solidifying the identity they set out to create and understanding their climb is about to get much steeper.

“When you win, you don’t get complacent,” Nagy said. “And when you don’t get complacent, you accept the next challenge and you try to get better.”

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