If the Chicago Bears want to trade Justin Fields, they will need the market to cooperate. That is why all eyes are on free agency. The market opens in a few days. Three names were set to become objects of heavy interest from multiple QB-needy teams. That number has now dropped to two. At the 11th hour, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers locked up Baker Mayfield to a new three-year contract, keeping him in the fold after his excellent 2023 season. This development is good news for the Bears, too.
In order for a Fields market to form, they need three things to happen. One was Mayfield staying in Tampa. That has occurred. The others were Kirk Cousins staying in Minnesota and Russell Wilson signing with any teams other than Atlanta and Pittsburgh since both are rumored to have interest in Fields. The good news is that Cousins and the Vikings are still discussing a return. The bad news is he will still test the free agent market. Word is the Falcons are prepared to make a hard push to sign him. They won’t be alone, though. Reports are that Denver will be involved as well.
As for Wilson, he’s already met with the Steelers. However, other teams like the Giants and Raiders are involved as well.
The Chicago Bears are content to wait this thing out.
While they would’ve preferred to get something done before free agency began, the market hasn’t cooperated. Rather than force the issue, GM Ryan Poles has decided to stay patient. He will first see what happens with the top free agents, then reassess the market in a couple of weeks. With a bit of luck, some teams will fail to land any of their options, leaving them in a rough situation. Either they try to trade up for a quarterback in the draft, or they pray that one of the lower-tier options is worth the risk.
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In situations like that, players like Fields become far more digestible.
Mayfield staying in Tampa Bay is a good first step. It feels like Cousins is the one who will steer where all of this goes. If he ends up in Atlanta, it could make things difficult for the Chicago Bears. If he goes almost anywhere else, the door pops wide open for a trade to happen. As always, the hardest part is the waiting. In the meantime, Poles will focus his efforts on shoring up other parts of the roster.
So Tampa saw something in Mayfield, Cleveland, then Rams (?), failed to see? He had the talent around him with other teams, but apparently didn’t fit the schemes. It took six years to find the right combo of scheme, talent, and play calling for him to realize his success. It looks like Poles understands the concept of properly building a team for sustained success. Having the foundation firmly in place makes for a smoother transition with the QB position and a new OC. I am excited to see if Poles pulls off another surprise with #1, as he has done… Read more »
Arnie- I just responded to your first comparison. It was pretty obvious what you were saying. I made the same claims you did. To prove to you your first post was baseless. But hey man spin it anyway you want just like spinning the bears will be making the same mistake the browns made with Baker. We will find out this week hopefully the bears decision at QB and we will find out in 3 more years if JF1 is a starter making almost 40mil a year or if he is a backup.
@BearCub30 They were better in Tampa than Cleveland, and his playcaller was either a better fit or maybe just more willing to be a good fit, so no, no contradiction between my two comments. My point to you was in response to your claims about Cleveland, and they simply weren’t nearly as bad as you tried to claim, and very few QB’s this decade have played with the trash surrounding him that Fields has.
Arnie- So your saying your earlier post was false? You said baker landed somewhere else and did great with all new better weapons but now your saying he had weapons before? Your first post was baseless and you proved it with your second post! Thank you. Now I’ll wait for your 15 paragraph essay going in circles about Baker compared to Justin. Same old same old song and dance
@BearCub30 Might wanna double check your claims there. I know you guys all care so much about the passing yardage total because that truly is the most important measure of success, but Mayfields years in Cleveland included pro bowl linemen (2 in the year you mentioned in fact), a young TE (at the time) who is now a pro bowler, a pro bowl tailback in Nick Chubb, and wait for it, multiple receivers who either had pro bowl seasons during Mayfield’s run (Jarvis Landry) or had them recently (OBJ). Almost exactly the same level of talent on offense that Fields… Read more »