Ryan Poles is in as enviable a position as any general manager in the NFL right now. Not only does he hold two top 10 picks in the draft, including #1 overall, but he also has over $60 million in salary cap space and a young quarterback already on the roster that other teams appear interested in trading for. Contrary to what some experts will say, Justin Fields is not your typical QB trade target. His steady improvement last year and immense physical talent are almost guaranteed to draw a strong market for the Bears.
That much is already becoming apparent. According to Albert Breer of the MMQB, other teams were so eager to start gauging Fields’ price tag that their staffer approached Bears representatives about it at the Senior Bowl.
“Chicago staffers got inquiries from other teams on Fields in Mobile. And while the Bears haven’t shopped Fields, those conversations did allow the team to start to gauge the 2021 first-rounder’s worth out there on the market.
The Bears are meeting over the next couple weeks to finalize plans at quarterback, with the expectation that they’ll have the plan in place in Indianapolis next week.”
That should give you an idea of how serious the interest in Fields is. By comparison, last year’s market for the #1 pick didn’t start to ramp up until the scouting combine. It is hard to deny that several teams may not feel great about their odds of landing a preferred quarterback in free agency or the draft. Acquiring Fields might be the best roll of the dice they have.
The Bears have lots of leverage with Justin Fields, too.
Typically, when quarterbacks are traded, they fall into one of two categories. They are either failed experiments that might serve as a decent backup elsewhere. Or they are quality veterans who have become too expensive and need to be moved because the team has bottomed out. In both cases, the original team doesn’t have much leverage. That isn’t the case with the Bears. They know they have a talented player who is still only 25 years old. More importantly, he has another cheap year left on his contract. Technically, Poles doesn’t have to trade him. The Bears could easily afford to keep him in 2024, either as a bridge until the #1 pick is ready or as a solid backup.
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If another team wants him, they will have to make a serious offer to get him. Current projections have it sitting somewhere around a 2nd round pick. If enough bidders get involved, it is possible that increases to a 1st. Pole has a history of getting more in trades than people expect. Robert Quinn fetched them a 4th in 2022 despite obvious signs of decline. Even Chase Claypool netted a 6th. Justin Fields played well enough last season to justify a strong return package. The immediate interest suggests the Bears will get it.
@Blockwood, the ticks up are for people hanging by a thread of hope for keeping JF. At this point that’s all the voting is for. Where did I ever say scouting reports aren’t of value? Please read again what I said. You brought up college stats as a reason to put JF over CW. I said that is wrong and they would never look at that. They would look at NFL translatable plays to scout. And CW had far more of them in college than JF. Not one real scout would put JF over CW is what else I said.
@JimJones your presentation of points are appreciated. Rather than refuting them, I will simply agree that we don’t process our views through the same filter.
I will defend however, your claim that nobody looks at or backs my process , there seems to be plenty more up ticks for my posts than down tlcks,,,,,just sayin.
And NFL DraftBuzz is a reliable source for gleaning data. If scouting reports aren’t of any value, then why do all NFL teams receive, review, and strategize using them as part of the process? Seems to be the trend.
@Blockwood, college stats are a very small percentile of the overall scouting package because situations are different. Scouts and draft experts worry more about success in plays that carry over to the NFL instead of propping stats besides each other and comparing, as they mean very little. You bring up scouting reports on the players, yet you fail to explain how literally not one would say JF is more well thought of than CW. That’s because CW tape shows plenty of traits that can carry over to being a NFL QB. Justin’s did not. It’s no more no less, but… Read more »
I have been listening to pod casts for Atlanta and Pittsburg and it seams that both towns love Justin Fields. Even on YouTube it is crazy how much love for Justin they have! (Yoda)
Amazing BS, no a single person within R Poles, M Eberflus or G McCaskey’s camp has publicly said a single word regarding trading J Fields or discussing trade options, yet E Lambert continues to push this drivel with accounts of ‘so-called-insiders’; for once I would like to see a comment from within the Bears Org that quantifies and supports any of this media hype by E Lambert and his darling CW.
Article on other Draft Prospects confirmed with factual reporting would be awesome, but that is to dull and to much truth for Lambert!!!!