Yahoo Sports Bears poised to trade Justin Fields, but it could take time
The Chicago Bears have yet to make an official decision about their direction at quarterback, but all signs are pointing to them drafting Caleb Williams at No. 1 and moving on from Justin Fields.
Fields’ trade market has been a hot topic of conversation since the NFL Scouting Combine last week, where there’s interest from several teams but no definitive decision in sight.
Sports Illustrated’s Albert Breer believes the Bears’ plan at quarterback will “crystallize soon” and “the winds of change are blowing.” Chicago got a chance to finally meet with Williams at the combine, where he made an impression during his meeting.
So the focus has now shifted to a Fields trade market, where the Atlanta Falcons, Pittsburgh Steelers, Las Vegas Raiders and Minnesota Vikings have emerged as contenders.
According to Breer, general manager Ryan Poles is prepared to trade Fields in the coming days. But he also understands that it takes time for a veteran quarterback market to develop — especially with free agency just a week away.
For now, though, while Poles has positioned the Bears to trade Fields in the coming days, he’s also open to waiting a bit if it takes time for the QB market, with Kirk Cousins and Baker Mayfield as headliners, to develop. The key is the team has flexibility; Chicago will be realistic in finding the right return for the 11th pick in the 2021 draft. It’s probably not getting a first-rounder, and it hasn’t been working off any assumption that it will be. Instead, they Bears have looked at historical data points as models.
Breer elaborated on those examples, including the San Francisco 49ers trading Alex Smith to the Kansas City Chiefs (for No. 34 in 2024 and a conditional pick in 2014, a third rounder that became a second rounder). The second was the New York Jets trading Sam Darnold to the Carolina Panthers in 2021, where the Jets landed a 2021 sixth-rounder along with second- and fourth-round selections in 2022.
While there’s certainly a market developing for Fields, it doesn’t sound like the Bears will able to get a deal done before the start of free agency as the fates of Kirk Cousins and Baker Mayfield will dictate which quarterback-needy teams would be monitoring Fields.
Poles mentioned wanting to “do right” by Fields in this process. But, unfortunately, it doesn’t sound like a move is imminent.
