Getty Bears quarterback Justin Fields.
The Chicago Bears‘ quarterback decision continues to pit Justin Fields against a future No. 1 pick in April, presumably Caleb Williams, but what if it doesn’t have to?
Aaron Schatz of ESPN posed that question on Friday, February 23, when he authored a list of “bold moves” for each team in the NFL.
When deciding between Williams and Fields, we ask, why not both? ESPN’s Adam Schefter has pointed this out as a possibility for the Bears. The idea would be that the Bears are in a good enough position across the roster that they wouldn’t want to take a chance with a rookie quarterback who could be great (playing like C.J. Stroud) but also could be terrible (playing like Bryce Young).
The Bears might have finished the season 7-10 but they were 11th in weighted DVOA, which gives more strength to recent games and lowers the importance of the early season. In particular, the Bears were eighth in weighted defensive DVOA. This could be the defense of a playoff team, and perhaps they want to go with the known (Fields) instead of the unknown in the hope it makes a playoff appearance more likely.
Justin Fields Has Given Public Voice to Desire to Remain With Bears
GettyQB Justin Fields of the Chicago Bears.
For Fields, there is minimal downside to Schatz’s proposal. He gets to remain the starter of an NFL team and stay in Chicago, which he said on the February 21 episode of “The St. Brown Brothers” podcast is his preferred outcome.
“Of course I want to stay,” Fields said Wednesday. “I can’t see myself playing in another place. But if it was up to me, I would want to stay in Chicago. I love the city. The city’s lit. The fans there are great and the people.”
There isn’t necessarily massive downside for the Bears either, save for Fields bombing and the bottom falling out of his trade value, which is roughly a second-round pick as the league turns the corner into the NFL Combine at the end of February.
“If Fields struggles in his fourth season, Williams will be there to come off the bench. If Fields plays well, the Bears can trade him for draft picks after the season,” Schatz wrote. “The Bears could even start Fields for two more years if he’s unexpectedly great in 2024, and then get a compensatory pick when Fields leaves in free agency. No matter the choice, the Bears will eventually get value for Fields.”
Caleb Williams Will Benefit if Bears Keep Him Behind Justin Fields for at Least 1 Year
GettyQuarterback Caleb Williams of USC.
The primary concern in Chicago if the team kept Fields and drafted Williams would be the potential of a divided locker room. Most of the players who have been there at least a year appear to respect Fields and want him to return.
But the benefit of sitting for a season as a quarterback is undeniable, particularly in the social media age of football wherein teams throw rookie signal-callers into the fire and watch fanbases burn them down if they don’t succeed immediately.
Patrick Mahomes, Tom Brady, Aaron Rodgers and Jordan Love are just a handful of examples of QBs whose franchises allowed them to learn as backups for at least one season. Of course, there are others who received the same chance and didn’t pan out.
That said, it’s undeniable that the Bears can protect their investment in Williams by keeping Fields and still continue an upward trajectory toward competing in the NFC North Division in 2024. There isn’t much inherent risk anywhere in the scenario of keeping Fields and drafting Williams, save for potential locker room dysfunction. But if the team believes it’s built a strong leadership structure, those issues should be of minimal concern.