Getty Justin Fields of the Chicago Bears celebrates a touchdown during his rookie season.
The Chicago Bears moved up nine spots in the first round of the 2021 NFL draft to select quarterback Justin Fields 11th overall, sending the 20th and 164th overall picks, in addition to first- and fourth-round picks in 2022, to the New York Giants.
While he didn’t have a breakout season by any means, Fields displayed poise, toughness, leadership and some incredible physical traits that will serve him well in an offense tailored to his strengths. Many felt the young signal-caller didn’t have that in during his rookie campaign in former head coach Matt Nagy’s offense.
Fields completed 58.9% of his passes for 1,870 yards, seven touchdowns and 10 interceptions last season. He also showed a great deal of promise-making plays with his legs, adding 420 yards and two scores on the ground in 12 games (10 starts).
With new head coach Matt Eberflus coupled with new general manager Ryan Poles, the hope is that they’ll both be able to surround Fields with the right talent and personnel to provide him with the best chance to succeed. Despite Fields being the logical focal point of the team moving forward, one analyst thinks Chicago should trade the young QB and its best defensive player for a veteran quarterback who is arguably past his prime.
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Bleacher Report Proposes Trading Justin Fields & Roquan Smith for Russell Wilson
In his January 27 column for Bleacher Report, Alex Kay named five trades that would “reshape the league” and he included a trade proposal that would send Fields, linebacker Roquan Smith and additional draft picks to Seattle in exchange for quarterback Russell Wilson.
Here’s the trade Kay proposed:
Bears Receive: QB Russell Wilson
Seahawks Receive: LB Roquan Smith, QB Justin Fields, 2022 CHI second-round pick (No. 39 overall), 2023 CHI first-round pick, 2023 CHI second-round pick
This is not a misprint — Kay really suggested that the Bears should ship not one but two of their top building blocks off in exchange for a 33-year-old QB coming off one of the worst statistical seasons of his 10-year career.
Wilson has had a phenomenal career, but his 2021 campaign wasn’t his finest. He registered career-lows in QBR (55.0) and rushing yards (183) and he threw for 3,113 in 14 games, the lowest total since his rookie campaign in 2012.
NFL Network insider Ian Rapoport reported on January 16 that Wilson will want to explore his options on the trade market this coming offseason. Considering that in the spring of 2021, Wilson’s agent Mark Rodgers listed the Bears as one of four teams the veteran QB would be willing to waive his no-trade clause for, there was bound to be speculation at some point — but the mere presence of Fields changes that.
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There’s No Way the Bears Would Ever Make This Trade
Kay seems to think there’s a possibility the Bears would want to go from Fields and his four-year, $18,871,957 rookie deal to paying Wilson base salaries of $19 million in 2022 and $22 million in 2023 — while also trading Smith and future draft capital away in the process.
Kay thinks Wilson would be attractive to the Bears because he “could instantly transform them into a contender.”
“Chicago has $34.3 million in projected cap room this offseason, so it wouldn’t take much finagling to squeeze in Wilson’s $37.0 million cap hit,” Kay wrote. “New Bears GM Ryan Poles would likely need to make a massive offer to get a deal done, but it would bring real hope to the Windy City for the first time in years. Meanwhile, the Seahawks would get to kick the tires on Fields and a linebacker for the foreseeable future in Roquan Smith. Those players, coupled with a handful of draft picks, would jump-start a rebuild in the Pacific Northwest.”
Here’s the thing: Fields already brought hope back to Chicago on Draft Day in 2021. And Smith is one of the best young linebackers in the league. This proposed trade would be great for the Seahawks — but disastrous for the Bears. There’s virtually no way Poles is going to trade away two of his team’s top players on both sides of the ball for an aging quarterback on an inflated contract.
The Bears would be far better served extending and paying Smith while surrounding Fields with more weapons and a better offensive line.
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