Getty Justin Fields #1 of the Ohio State Buckeyes.
It finally happened.
The Chicago Bears have added their first quarterback via the NFL Draft since taking Mitch Trubisky second overall in 2017. In a move that sent Bears Twitter into the stratosphere, the Bears traded up with the New York Giants to select former Ohio State quarterback Justin Fields 11th overall. Chicago sent the 20th overall pick this year, a 2021 fifth-rounder (No. 164 overall), a 2022 first-round pick and a 2022 fourth-rounder to the Giants in order to nab Fields, per Field Yates.
Many analysts and insiders had been speculating for months that the Bears could be looking to make a huge move to address the position in the draft, with Andy Dalton’s one-year, $10 million contract reassuring no one that the team had found its franchise quarterback. Fields entering the picture changes that for a city that has been starved at the position for decades.
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Bears Twitter Loses Its Mind at Selection of Fields
After Bears GM Ryan Pace traded the farm for Trubisky in 2017 and it didn’t pan out, Bears fans have been hoping against hope for an answer at the position. Fields, a two-time Big Ten Offensive Player of the Year, could be that answer.
Lets’s just say Bears Twitter was slightly happy about it.
Justin Fields, Bears QB.
It happened.
IT HAPPENED!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
We love you Ryan Pace.
I’m dead. I died.
The former Ohio State star will now give Matt Nagy a quarterback with a similar skill set to Patrick Mahomes. Plus, Fields already has a nickname that is tailor made for the Windy City:
Soldier Fields
Let’s go.
Soldier Fields
SOLDIER. FIELDS.
It’s perfect.
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Bears Get Established College Star in Fields
Fields, who was once projected to be a top five pick, slid slightly out of the top 10 due to criticism about his field vision, and for his tendency to hold onto the ball too long at times, but he’s also known for giving clutch performances in big games.
After spending his freshman season at Georgia in 2018, Fields transferred to Ohio State, where he started 22 games over the last two years. The 6-3, 228-pound Fields completed 68.4 percent of his passes for 5,373 yards, 63 touchdowns and nine interceptions. The ultimate dual-threat quarterback, Fields also ran for 867 yards and 15 scores in that span.
Fields led Ohio State to a 49–28 win over No. 1 overall pick Trevor Lawrence and the Clemson Tigers in the Sugar Bowl last season, going 22-28 for 385 yards, six touchdowns and a pick. Perhaps the most impressive aspect of that performance was the rib-crushing hit he played through during the game. Fields was clearly hurt, but he finished the game, displaying the kind of grit that should make him very popular in Chicago.
For his part, Fields is ready to make his mark on a franchise sorely in need of hope at the quarterback position. “I’m more than excited. I’m more than ready to get up there,” the new Bears quarterback said, per Zack Pearson of Bear Report. Fields also seems to understand a bit about the fan base that’s about to cheer him on:
“I know #Bears fans are really passionate about football.” – Justin Fields.
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