Will the Chicago Bears stick with quarterback Justin Fields or trade him and put their faith in No. 1 overall pick Caleb Williams? For the last few weeks, it has been THE story with the historic club.
That choice may have already been made following Justin Fields’ terrible performance in Chicago’s 17-9 loss to archrival Green Bay Packers on Sunday.
To be fair, Fields’ poor performance (11-for-16 for 148 yards) wasn’t all his fault. The offensive line struggled at Lambeau Field on Sunday, surrendering five sacks and generally giving way to a Packers defense that ate them up.
Jordan Love, unlike Justin Fields, rose to the occasion. But high-end, elite-level NFL quarterbacks are expected to transcend, like, well, the Packers’ Jordan Love, who handled a resurgent Bears defense in a vital game to notch over 300 passing yards and lead his team to victory.
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Fields, no matter how great he is, has never been able to do so with the Bears. The 3-year veteran with a 10-28 record as a starter has shown flashes of amazing brilliance in Chicago, but he’s never demonstrated the “I’m putting this team on my shoulders and leading it to success” moxie that someone like Love has displayed in less than one full season as the main man.
That shouldn’t be interpreted as a criticism of Fields. Some team may come for him, and if the chemistry is good, he could go on to become an elite in his position. But he’s not with the Bears right now and may never be. The rest of the club, on the other hand, is close to becoming outstanding, and the moment appears to be perfect to gamble on a younger, fresher quarterback with a narrower skill set (who will also be less expensive than Fields, who is one season away from a hefty fifth-year option).
An Expert Calls In the media, there is a personality.
In his post-game assessment from Lambeau Field, David Kaplan summed up the Bears’ situation.
“They’re not good enough at quarterback,” said Kaplan. “We’ll see what [GM] Ryan Poles’ strategy is, but for now, come on, you’ve got to be honest, you can love Justin all you want…However, guess what? If Caleb Williams checks all the boxes and Ryan Poles believes he’s the greatest thing for the club in the long run, I’ll go with him. If he wants to maintain Justin, who is our general manager and I think does an excellent job, I’ll go with Justin Fields. My gut instinct is that Chicago will get a new quarterback.”
Fields Is Leaving Chicago?
Fields, it appears, feels the same way.
“Like I said, I control what I can control,” Fields said after the loss on Sunday. “This offseason, I’m going to get healthy, spend time with my family, and improve.” We went through the same situation last year, when we had the No. 1 choice, and everyone was wondering, “What if?” What if… ‘What if…?’ and nothing occurred. I’m not suggesting nothing will happen this offseason because, after all, we don’t know. But I’m not going to let the possibility or what if, what if not keep me from enjoying life and going about my business.”
“It would mean a lot,” Fields remarked when asked about staying in Chicago. “I get along well with Ryan and the other guys upstairs.” At the end of the day, this is a commercial. They must make difficult judgments. My job is simply to go out there and give it my all. It would mean a lot to get that affirmation from them and just know that they believe in me to lead this team and be the quarterback.
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“However, that decision is not in my hands.” All I have control over is what I did. I gave it everything I had. I have no regrets, whether it’s here or not.
“To the City of Chicago, I adore you.” You know, I love the fans and the support from all the Bears, and if this is my final rodeo with ya’ll, I appreciate everything.”
There’s no doubting Justin Fields is a gentleman. He’s just not the Bears’ man.
