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Reactions to the Justin Fields trade have been mixed, but one former Bears pass rusher seems to believe Fields is better off without Chicago.
A fifth-round pick for the Bears in 2020, Trevis Gipson spent three years with Chicago and two years playing with Fields, during the 2021 and 2022 seasons. The Bears cut Gipson prior to the start of the 2023 season, and he signed a one-year deal with the Tennessee Titans after that, appearing in eight games last year.
Currently a free agent himself, Gipson took a moment on social media to throw a little shade at the squad that drafted him shortly after news of the Fields trade broke. His take on the situation?
“They didn’t deserve bro anyway, tbh,” he wrote on X.
Could His Reaction Be Sour Grapes?
It’s entirely possible Gipson is still a tad sour about his departure from the Windy City. After amassing 7.0 sacks for the Bears in 16 games (nine starts) in 2021, Gipson’s production dipped the following year, when the team brought a new regime in.
Led by general manager Ryan Poles and head coach Matt Eberflus, the Bears incorporated a new 4-3 defensive scheme, different from the 3-4, linebacker-heavy scheme the team used previously and Gipson didn’t exactly thrive in it. He finished with 2.0 sacks in 17 games (10 starts) for Chicago in 2022 under Eberflus.
“In terms of Gipson, love that kid,” Poles said about Gipson’s release in August of 2023. “It was more of a fit thing, scheme fit. I think his success came in a different scheme. … I’m excited to see where he goes and what he does.”
“I don’t think he fell short, I’ll just say that with us, like Ryan touched on, he had his most production in a 3-4 scheme versus a 4-3,” Bears assistant GM Ian Cunningham added.
“He did a lot for us, just in terms of the leadership and who he was, showed up everyday. We just wanted the best situation for him and ultimately that was the decision we came to.”
Is Trevis Gipson Correct About the Bears Failing QB Justin Fields?
There’s no doubt the Bears failed Fields in at least some capacity. When Fields was a rookie, he inherited a head coach (Matt Nagy) who was already on the hot seat and a supporting cast devoid of any playmakers.
Nagy was fired after that season, and Fields had his second coach and second offensive scheme in two years, which is far from ideal. Fields also didn’t have much of an offensive line either of his first two seasons.
“Thanks for the memories, Justin. You were let down by an organization caught between competing and rebuilding. Ultimately they failed you,” Sam Householder of Windy City Gridiron wrote on X after the trade.
While it’s true Chicago didn’t help Fields much at all over his first two seasons, Year 3 was different, and the growth the team needed to see wasn’t quite there.
Perhaps Josh Schrock of NBC Sports put it best: “The Bears failed Fields. No question. But Justin never did enough to prove without a doubt he was the guy. The Bears have a rare opportunity in front of them. They are set up to win and the chance to draft a guy with Caleb Williams’ ability, pedigree, and perceived generational potential doesn’t come around twice.”
With Caleb Williams in line to be drafted by the Bears at No. 1 overall, Poles has taken measures to give Williams a roster Fields didn’t have entering the league, adding WRs DJ Moore and Keenan Allen over the past calendar year while also fortifying the offensive line.
Whether Williams succeeds remains to be seen, but Poles and the Bears have unquestionably done a better job with the roster around that will surround him than the previous regime had done for Fields.
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