The Chicago Bears are on the verge of a major offseason, and one source feels the team is leaning toward a move that would change the face of the franchise.
On the Mully & Haugh Show on Friday, December 1st, Brad Biggs of the Chicago Tribune predicted that the Bears will release quarterback Justin Fields in spring.
“That’s where it appears to be headed as I evaluate the situation,” Biggs said. “There are five games remaining, so he’s got an opportunity to change the trajectory of this thing. But the evaluation at Halas Hall is going to be made on the entirety of it, not how people felt on December 1. It’s the entire season.”
Bears GM Ryan Poles Can’t Miss Out on Another CJ Stroud
If Chicago ultimately makes the call to part with Fields after three years together, it will mean two things. The first is that the team will select a quarterback at the top of the 2024 NFL Draft and the second is that it will trade Fields, potentially for a first-round pick in return.
General manager Ryan Poles passed up the opportunity to draft CJ Stroud last April, who is now a legitimate talking point in the MVP discussion as a rookie. The deal Poles made instead netted the Bears wide receiver DJ Moore and what looks likely to be the No. 1 pick in next year’s draft from the Carolina Panthers. Beyond that, Fields’ trajectory appeared on a potential MVP course in 2023 as well, so the mistake is excusable.
But if Poles makes the same misstep again in 2024 by passing on Caleb Williams and/or Drake Maye and Fields doesn’t turn the corner as a passer, fans and media members will start bandying about the term “fireable offense.” And they may not be wrong to do so.
“ESPN contacted eight NFL scouts and executives who said Williams is the can’t-miss prospect,” Courtney Cronin reported on November 27.
Just the pressure of widespread perceptions such as the one Cronin noted may be enough to push Poles into the decision to part with Fields and reset the QB clock. Doing so removes the prospect of paying a quarterback massive money for at least the next four or five years.
That will allow a team that already has a boatload of cap space heading into 2024 to operate with financial flexibility for several seasons to come
Keeping Justin Fields Riskier Move for Bears Than Trading Him, Drafting QB
Moving on from Fields will also allow the Bears to recoup a pick similar to, or better than, the early 2024 second-rounder they sacrificed in a trade with the Washington Commanders to acquire edge-rusher Montez Sweat.
Chicago selected Fields with No. 11 pick in 2021. While he hasn’t progressed as the passer some thought he might be in 2023, Fields still has a strong arm and is arguably the most dangerous rusher at the position in the NFL right now.
He will be just 25 years old next season and will play on a salary-controlled contract for the next two campaigns if whatever franchise has his rights exercises the fifth-year team option on his initial four-year, $19 million rookie deal.
Fields’ upside, age and contract are likely to garner a first-round pick in trade, even if he finishes the season inconsistently, based on the immense need at the QB position around the league.
Poles will ultimately take a risk by either selling or keeping Fields. However, given the organization’s circumstances, the second option poses the greatest risk, making moving on from Fields the safer and more reasonable choice.
