Chicago Bears agree to a major trade that will send quarterback Justin Fields to the Pittsburgh Steelers
The Chicago Bears have made their decision regarding the biggest question of the NFL offseason. The Bears will be moving on from former first-round pick Justin Fields and will officially be trading him to the Pittsburgh Steelers in exchange for a 2025 6th-round pick that goes to a 4th-round pick based on playtime, per ESPN's […]
The Chicago Bears have made their decision regarding the biggest question of the NFL offseason.
The Bears will be moving on from former first-round pick Justin Fields and will officially be trading him to the Pittsburgh Steelers in exchange for a 2025 6th-round pick that goes to a 4th-round pick based on playtime, per ESPN's Adam Schefter.
Fields was drafted by the Bears with the 11th overall pick in the 2021 NFL Draft and has spent the last three seasons as the starter in Chicago. Now, he will be joining a new team and system heading into 2024 with the Bears set to draft their next franchise quarterback.
NFL Network's Ian Rapoport was first on the report and now the two sides will officially be going their separate ways after months of uncertainty.
"I can’t say thank you enough to the city of Chicago for taking me in and embracing me," Fields said in his official statement following the trade. "Thank you to the entire Bears organization and ownership for allowing me the opportunity to be part of such a historic franchise. But most of all thank you to my all my brothers that I played with. You all were the reason I attacked each day the way I did. I can’t thank you all enough for what y’all have meant to me over the last 3 years through the ups and downs. I wish each one of you nothing but success. Ready for this next chapter!"
Bears general manager Ryan Poles will now get the opportunity to hand select his next quarterback and all eyes in Chicago now turn to USC quarterback Caleb Williams who is widely believed to be the top pick in the 2024 NFL Draft.
"But I think the reality, for Chicago, will be that the talent of Caleb Williams plus the chance to reset the quarterback-on-a-rookie-contract clock will be too much for Chicago to pass on," Sports Illustrated's Albert Breer laid out back in February.
The Bears are currently armed with the first and ninth overall selections in the draft. The team now as the arsenal prepared to not only select their next quarterback but also continue surrounding him with top-end talent, like the front office has been doing all offseason.
Fields leaves Chicago after having a 10-28 career record over three seasons as the starter. He finishes his career with the Bears with 6,674 passing yards, 40 passing touchdowns and 30 interceptions. On the ground, Fields rushed for 2,220 yards and 14 touchdowns while being the team's leading rusher in each of the last two seasons.
Fields will be joining the Steelers' offense that currently features top offensive talent in wide receiver George Pickens, running backs Najee Harris and Jaylen Warren, along with a solid offensive line. Fields will be joining the quarterback room as the backup and insurance policy behind newly acquired quarterback Russell Wilson. The Steelers' offense will also have a new offensive coordinator joining head coach Mike Tomlin's staff in former Atlanta Falcons' head coach Arthur Smith.
ESPN's Adam Schefter noted last month that Fields' new head coach has always been a "big fan" of the young quarterback and landing with the Steelers has always seemed like an ideal pairing throughout the entire process this offseason.
After being drafted by the Bears back in 2021, Fields mentioned two quarterbacks in particular he's aimed to model his game after since entering the league, and one happens to be his new teammate that he will now be sitting to learn behind.
"I would say when I was younger, like maybe eighth, ninth grade, it was more Cam Newton," Fields said following the draft. "I’ve kind of turned more to a Russell Wilson-type quarterback. I’ve watched a lot of film on [Wilson]. I’ve watched a lot of highlights on him, so I think the things that we can do on the field with both of those quarterbacks, I think we have a lot of similarities between extending plays with our legs and also having the arm talent. I think those are a couple of guys that I kind of emulate my game after."
The Steelers' offense was in serious need of quarterback depth are recently trading away former first round pick Kenny Pickett while letting Mason Rudolph and Mitch Trubisky walk in free agency. Pittsburgh obviously wanted to play the position smart by landing a young talented quarterback to sit and learn behind Wilson.
The Bears' decision to finally move on from Fields pays off big time by still being able to find a team willing to trade for their former starter. Making the decision now also gets the elephant out of the room heading into the 2024 NFL Draft allowing the Bears' front office to put all of their efforts into the upcoming draft class.
As for Fields and the Steelers, Fields will be entering into the final year of his rookie contract but also has his fifth-year option available to be picked up for the 2025 season. This gives the Steelers plenty of time to evaluate whether or not he can prove to be the team's quarterback of the future with Wilson only on a one-year deal.
It's a unfortunate ending for Fields' career in Chicago will a lot of promise seemingly left on the table. Both sides will now go their separate ways, perhaps for the better as it relates to both parties involved.
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