Had the Panthers sustained the form they showed under Steve Wilks, Justin Fields is likely preparing for his fourth season as the Bears’ starter. Because Carolina produced the first 15-loss season in the 17-game era, Fields will probably be on the move soon.
The Bears obtaining the top pick via the Bryce Young trade has them surveying this year’s top college arms. Caleb Williams is the clear frontrunner to be Chicago’s starting quarterback next season, with a recent report indicating the Bears’ decision no longer involves a Williams-or-Fields call but rather a choice between which QB the team will select at No. 1. This places Fields in limbo.
Connected to the Falcons and Steelers, Fields also spent two years under new Raiders OC Luke Getsy. Though, Las Vegas is not viewed as a likely destination for the three-year Chicago starter. Denver probably should not be, either, considering Russell Wilson‘s clunky fit in Sean Payton‘s offense. Regardless of where Fields goes — if, in fact, the Bears are ready to move him — GM Ryan Poles wants this process done soon.
The team that made the most similar trade — the 2021 Jets, who moved three-year starter Sam Darnold before selecting Zach Wilson second overall — did not complete the move until April 5 of that year. Poles, however, bucked tradition last year by trading the Panthers the No. 1 pick before free agency. That is the earliest any team has knowingly moved a No. 1 overall pick since the NFL camped its draft in April in 1976. Fields wants this process to be settled, and Poles would not mind having it done by free agency’s outset.
“I would love to know as soon as possible. I would love to know, but I know that’s not how the process works. Sure, before free agency would be good,” Poles said, via ESPN.com’s Courtney Cronin. “Like I said, I’m also taking, if we were to do something with Justin, I want to do right by him and I know, again, living in that gray space, we would want to do something sooner rather than later.
“But just like I talk about with contracts, it takes two teams to figure that out, but at the same time, we’re also trying to figure out the draft process as well. There’s a lot of different things with different timelines going and that’s what makes it a little difficult.”
Two years remain on Fields’ rookie contract, and his next team will face a fifth-year option call May 2. The Panthers picked up Darnold’s option upon acquiring him; it should be expected Fields’ next team does the same. With the salary cap now set, Fields’ fifth-year option — which will come in on Tier 3 of the four-tiered format — will cost $25.6MM. Determining trade value also represents a potential stumbling block here, as other QB-needy teams gauge how they want to proceed. The Bears have been hearing from teams regarding Fields’ value for several weeks now, however.
The Commanders and Patriots have easier paths to addressing their position. The teams that do not hold top-three draft real estate and could use a veteran presumably represent the array of clubs with which Poles has been in contact. Fields would be a much cheaper alternative — for the time being, at least — to Kirk Cousins. The Vikings, who are not a realistic Fields destination due to being an NFC North team, are in talks with their six-year starter. But Cousins could shake up the QB market by testing free agency.
Should the Bears wait beyond free agency’s primary period to trade Fields, the market would narrow. Should Chicago make its latest big-picture QB move before the market opens, it would need to strike by 11am CT on March 11, when the legal tampering period begins.
Translation: Submit your best offer by March 11th or you need to trade into the top 7. If that doesn’t work, pay Kirk or Baker $50M over two years or Fileda $30M.
Baker will get more years and money than that from Tampa. So if you’re gonna outbid them you’ll have to offer him Daniel jones money which I don’t see happening.
Fields will probably appreciate a decision as well
Atlanta makes the most since for Fields and the Bears. The hard or challenging part will be settling on the compensation. I don’t see the Raiders as a viable option and I think the Pittsburgh smoke is just that… smoke. My dark horse for Fields is actually NE, especially if they’re not enamored with Daniels.
Something like Fields and the 9th pick to NE for the 3rd pick. Not sure if that’s enough for Chicago, but it seems fair.
I think a second for Fields would be closer than the difference between 3 and 9, which is a much higher price.
Yeah, it’s tough to measure because the point value system can get convoluted if a QB needy team trades up. In this case, NE wouldn’t be trading up for QB and technically neither would Chicago.
I can see how a 2nd rd pick has less value than moving from 9 to 3. So, in that scenario maybe Chicago would have to add a future 4th, maybe 3rd.
Who knows, it will be interesting to watch play out. Chicago once again controls the offseason headlines with picks 1 & 9, the potential Fields trade and a ton of cap space. BIG offseason for them.
If that was the cost, NE would be better off just drafting Daniels.
Send him to Minnesota.. with the exception of McCarthy it’ll prevent Minnesota from missing again on a top QB DP as there isn’t a good alternative to the Xichigan product.
Send him to MN? You don’t seem to be aware that both teams must agree to any trade.
Can you please stop the justin fields to the Pittsburgh Steelers talk? We just got rid of 1 garbage can Chicago quarterback, we don’t want another.
lol, they Bears have ALWAYS had garbage for qb’s.
Chicago has made their decision. They’re going to draft a prima donna that paints his fingernails saying ‘F**K Utah’ only to get blown out by Utah! Check out his stats against top 25 D’s; he’s below average which makes him perfect to be the Bears next QB.
Same. I don’t understand the hype. This guy got wiped. Maybe a 5 year bench builder. Mayfield trajectory incoming.
That’s what so ridiculous about the reactionary fan base group that is crying for Fields to be out of town and for Williams to be drafted #1. The assumption he is definitely going to be vastly better than Fields. I get Fields needs work and may not pan out, but I still think that 2022 needs to be overlooked, that 2023 was his real first or second season, and that many of his issues can be fixed, or schemed to cover up. Trade down, get a stud LT or WR with 1st rounds this season, likely have a 2nd rounder (missing since Sweat came to town) and picks for 2025 and build around him and if it does not work next year, the trade down should have netted the Bears another first rounder for 2025 which is either going to be good or trade up to a team not needing a QB, but that time the team should be much better off for talent and depth with the extra picks and FA…
With Williams there are an awful lot of red flags. He could be great, I just do not see it, especially if he is on this Bears team which still needs a lot of work. If he is bad, after his 10th pick in under 5 games the same whiners crying for Williams will be crying that he is a bust and the Bears should have never taken him.
If the Bears take him and he is great, I have no issue preparing my apology and admitting my error, but I doubt these other guys will do the same if he busts.
I appreciate your last paragraph. As one of the guys on the ‘trade Fields” bus, I will do the same if a new QB flops… I will just say this.. All the starting QBs from the playoffs required a certain amount of risk/ faith. They are all established passers with the stats to prove it. Fields simply doesn’t have that. He’s had 3 years to show improvement but just plain hasn’t. It’s time for the Bears to take that risk/ leap of faith and in essence, go for broke. I would add that Mahomes’ senior season on a bad 3-6 Texas Tech team kept four QB needy teams (including the Bears) from taking that risk, but it didn’t stop Andy Reid. I say, do something un-Bear like and go for it Poles!
I get how some fans want the shiny object in the room, but the GM cant be as desperate. Desperation often leads to rash and bad decisions. Of all of those recent past QB stars, most came into teams in FAR better condition than Fields with this Bears team (and with what the Bears became in 2022-Mahomes would have been asking for a trade). Again I get that Fields has flaws, but its the devil you know vs the devil you don’t (and often in the case of highly touted QBs, busts). I mean really in the past 20 years, how many QBs in a draft pan out to be even above average?1, 2? Out of how many QBs per draft? If the Bears had a better team ready for a rookie QB I would say go for it, but this Bears team is far from being on par of the team Mahomes or a guy like Purdy, went to, or even Stroud went to last season. Again I hope he pans out if the Bears pull the trigger on Williams, or someone else (as there really is no choice if you are a fan), because if it does not work out then this Bears team is likely going through another rebuild, likely with a new GM, and, if not trading down this year instead, means the only way they are in position to go this high again is if fans need to suffer through another 2022. The game has an always will start and end with the strength of the O a D lines. Poles still has work to do on both of those fronts, before going for the point of desperation. I do not want to see the Bears become the Browns
Shiny objects? Desperation? I thought this was a serious discussion. When you can come back with an answer as to how many QBs with 3 years in the league that suddenly transform into championship level players, then we can have an honest discussion. And there are NO guarantees in the draft. Never have been. All picks come with risk. You wanna keep treading water? Keep Fields. You want to actually compete with the Chiefs, Niners and Ravens of the league? You have to find a guy with a much higher ceiling. and build around him… And the Texans were picked to finish dead last by everybody last pre-season. Stroud was the difference.
It is a serious discussion. ‘Shiny object’ and ‘desperation’ encompasses many fans at this point. I get it, as the Bears have not had that guy in a long time, if ever. However, I think the Bears are not finished enough to take a shot in the dark at QB in the draft with a high pick. BTW, as for other QBs who took a while but found success: I would say Steve Young and one can also argue Kurt Warner who was stacking shelves before playing on the Rams.
Look at the Bears last early draft QBs in the last 25 seasons and see what the ‘shiny object’ and ‘desperation’ gets this team, heck look at the Browns last 25 years in QB picks to reinforce it. How many ‘can’t miss’ guys did the Browns take?
I just think that with this pick, the Bears could be trying to jump ahead in the rebuild process. Whereas trading down gets you more chances at quality players in other positions and depth. Build a team that even Bagent could win with consistently then you are ready to take a shot a QB. Mahomes, Jackson, and Purdy did not go to teams where they wre the only guy with talent (like Fields was when the Bears completely tore down the team in ’22). they went to the possibly the best case scenarios. Whatever the Bears pick is, that QB is not. The Bears are not 2022 awful, but they are not a great team either and they barely know how to finish a win off.
Picking a QB with #1 may work out after all. I do not know, however, Im wary of anyone talking about ‘cant miss’ and ‘generational’ QBs. It just feels the greater likelihood is that the pick busts either due to team fit, or the player themselves. The NFL is a different animal than college, and if they bust out, then the Bears are looking to several more average to mediocre seasons, and then Poles is gone and another rebuild ensues. Fields is not perfect, but many of his issues can be fixed or covered up with scheming by a good OC (Lets face it, Getsy got the job because he wrongly got credit for how good Rodgers is). Can Fields get completely fixed? Im not sure, maybe not, but at least the Bears know what they have to work with with him, should still be able to get to the playoffs in ’24, and they likely have another high 1st rounder to try to use to get ‘that’ QB if Fields does not pan out but at least the team is likely in better condition than if they draft a guy who turns out worse than or equal to Fields.
I mean, neither of us are wrong here. Warner and Young were excellent passers from the start while Fields has never had that consistently in his game. Could he find it? Maybe. It seems from the vast majority of scouts and evaluators, that Williams has that kind of ceiling. Stroud does and the Texans were hardly a finished product when they drafted him.. Bottom line- I don’t know. To some extent it’s all kind of a crapshoot. I just believe after so many decades of NEVER getting the right guy at QB, why not swing for the fences when they have this rare opportunity to do so?
I’ve never seen so much hype over a bunch or quarterbacks that led their teams to mediocre results.
I think there has been even more hype around Ohtani and the Angels finished 31 games behind the league leading Braves in MLB.
Mahomes’ team had a losing record his last season of college. Stetson Bennett won a national championship. It’s just not very strongly correlated to league success.
Yeah, I’ve said it before, and I’ll say it again- if Chicago drafts Williams, they are going to make a monumental mistake. I don’t think he’s mentally equipped to lead an NFL franchise, and you can’t coach those traits up in a guy.
The Fields critics are going to say “he holds onto the ball too long”, etc… but every complaint I’ve seen from that side are things that can be coached. Fields is a leader, and his teammates like him, which are things you can’t teach.
blah blah blah…college stats, college record, finger nails… why is has he been the best qb prospect last 2 years?
what should they do arty? keep fields? draft maye or daniels? trade back and draft mccarthy? sign a vet?
Trevor Lawrence was pegged as the next ‘generational QB’. He’s been above average in 3 years. Every year there’s a new generational QB coming out of NCAA. We’re told Williams, Daniels, and Maye are worth the hype this year; right?
And we all know 2 out of 3 won’t be generational. One may be above average. As Appalachian_Outlaw says above, ‘Williams doesn’t seem to be mentality equipped to be a face of the franchise.’. I agree w/ him.
“we all know” ok Arthur if you are GM of the Bears what is your move?
You are a homer. Good nickname for you.
Easy, I would have fired the HC and spoken with offensive assistants from the top 7 teams over the past 3 years or so. Found a guy around 40 or so, that can relate to the players and hired him.
Then, I would have followed what the Lions did last draft. A shocking statement I know. The Lions GM said ‘said they only had 14 players with first-round grades on them in the 2023 NFL Draft’. Which is true every draft. Never once have 32 players been hits. And give a real evaluation to this year’s QB’s. As Dak, Kirk, Purdy, & Hurts & others have shown; you can win w/o a top 5-10 drafted QB, but with loaded offenses.
If I didn’t have a top 5 graded pick on any of the QB’s this year, I would sucker some team for picks and players. DC, Atlanta, NE, Giants, Titans et al. Would gladly pay to move up for publicity of a ‘top 5 QB in house!’.
And since this draft is filled with solid lines on both sides, and WR’s, build an offense that some player can step into. Everyone says Purdy is a ‘game manager’. Well he managed to take the 9’ers to OT in the SB. No problem with that result for a manager.
QB’ing is so much more than height and arm strength. It’s about leadership of an entire team.
To me, Caleb comes across as a new Manzel. A cocky, arrogant punk, that is all about himself. Never met the guy nor will I, but that’s the image portrayed by him.
You’re starting to put as much thought into team analysis as the sensi master AK185…lol.
This… This is why I, and others, have said at this point, you trust the new OC, roll the dice with Fields, trade down for a ton picks for this and next season (and maybe get a top five pick in the 1st round next season too), get a guy like MHJ, and a stud LT if you can, then get a center, Guard, TE with the extra picks this season, and that’s just the Offense, you get your other Edge, NT, and now Safety on D. All of which you can do better with trading down from #1, and maybe again(as moving to a new QB on the pay scale does not mean much if you have to overpay on O and D linemen in FA). Get your quality and depth in place and even Bagent wins consistently with this roster. Again If Williams is drafted by the Bears and succeeds Ill be the first to admit my error. Ill root for the team no matter what they do but typically these ‘can’t miss’ guys miss, and its even more dramatic if you miss with the #1 overall when trading down could have fixed a lot more holes in the roster than FA can sometimes. I also think that of that 10m Wiliams made went to a lot of analysts and PR firms to get Analysts to preach how awesome he was.. in College, NFL is a different beast.