NEWSLETTER
The Super Bowl is 13 days away, and I’m intent on filling the time between now and then by talking a whole lot about the Chicago Bears. Because time is a flat circle, the Bears are entering a second straight offseason owning the No. 1 overall pick (thanks, Panthers!), having an ample amount of holes to fill around the roster, and pondering what the team will do with quarterback Justin Fields.
With the Bears owning the No. 1 pick again, I find myself diving into all sorts of mock drafts. In doing so, I’m starting to notice a trend of analysts, writers, and pundits sending Bears quarterback Justin Fields away in a trade. And with that, we’re starting to see some potential landing spots should the team decide to draft quarterback Caleb Williams with the first overall pick.
Between finding a future home for Fields and hashing out what the Bears could get in a trade for their starting quarterback, we’ve got much to discuss.
The Las Vegas Raiders are a perfect fit for Justin Fields…
… so much so that I’d go as far as to say that it is too perfect.
In his latest mock draft, Chris Trapasso (CBS Sports) puts the Bears and Raiders together for a Justin Fields trade. And it is an eyebrow-raising deal:
At first blush, seeing the Bears trading Fields for (what looks like on the surface) two third-round picks would feel underwhelming. However, the conditions of the trade, as put together by Trapasso, make this potential deal one with a great amount of intrigue. This is as creative as mock trades get, folks.
If that trade doesn’t do it for you, then perhaps this proposal via NBC Sports Chicago insider Josh Schrock might float your boat:
So … what’s your preference?
Offers from both Schrock and Trapasso have their perks. Both deals would offer Fields a fresh start and a clean slate with a new team. But Trapasso’s trade has a potential first-round pick that could come attached. And, for me, that might make dealing Fields truly enticing. Because if General Manager Ryan Poles is out on Justin Fields moving forward, then trading him for a package that could include a future first-round pick has its allure.
What about a Bears-Patriots swap?
It was 38 years ago when the Chicago Bears and New England Patriots squared off in Super Bowl XX. Fast forward to 2024, and both teams own top 10 picks in the upcoming NFL Draft. But unlike the Bears, who are in a position to take USC quarterback Caleb Williams or North Carolina’s Drake Maybe because they have the good fortune of owning the Carolina Panthers’ first-round pick, the Patriots are picking third overall. That puts them squarely on the outside looking in when it comes to drafting a quarterback.
This is where the Bears and Justin Fields come into play with a mock draft trade proposal from NBC Sports that’ll blow your socks off:
Now, this is a creative way to put together a mock draft trade. Not only would it send the Patriots a quarterback with tremendous upside and untapped potential, but the Bears would *ALSO* move back up in the draft to take two of the first three picks. For the Bears, successfully executing this trade would put them in a position to draft Marvin Harrison Jr. with the third pick. And for the Pats, they’d get a motivated quarterback onto a franchise with a winning tradition and pair him with a defense that ranked 15th in scoring, 7th in yards, and 9th in defensive DVOA.
BN THROWBACK: Patriots reportedly talked to the Falcons about trading up in the 2021 NFL Draft because of their interest in Justin Fields
Other Potential Justin Fields landing spots
How about a little rapid-fire session name-checking potential fits for Fields:
JUSTIN FIELDS SPEAKS: Future, Falcons, Focus, More
We’ll keep an eye out on the rumor mill. And, who knows, perhaps Justin Fields will end up back with the Bears in 2024. Stranger things have happened.
