One of the biggest stories entering the 2024 NFL Draft is what the Chicago Bears will do with the first overall pick, and how it determines the future of QB Justin Fields. After trading the first overall pick in 2023 to the Carolina Panthers, the Bears are going into the 2024 NFL Draft with the first overall pick again thanks to the Panthers having the worst record in football. However, with this first overall pick comes with the question of if they will stick with Fields as their QB going into a pivotal 2024 season. While Fields is supremely talented, having the first overall pick once again probably won’t happen anytime soon, so resetting your timeline with a new QB and recouping as many picks as possible by trading Fields could be a good outcome as well.
Rumors are beginning to swirl that Fields could end up staying in Chicago, with the Bears potentially trading out of that first overall pick again in order to build more around the young QB. On Monday, NBC sports’ Peter King wrote in his Football Morning in America column that Chicago trading the first overall pick and keeping Fields is “the way the wind is blowing.”
While King says that he has no knowledge of that being a 100 percent truth, King is reading the tea leaves based on conversations he’s had. King mentions that Bears GM Ryan Poles can really build out the infrastructure of the Bears’ roster by trading back and collecting more blue-chip players, potentially trading down with Washington, then again with Atlanta. That would give Chicago multiple early picks in this year and next year’s draft that can boost the franchise immediately.
In addition, Good Morning Football’s Peter Schrager outlines a scenario where Poles can trade back and orchestrate the NFL Draft by simply having a lot of assets on the roster.
There are two schools of thought here with the keep Fields vs. trade Fields scenario: in the case for trading Fields, as I stated earlier, you get the chance to reset your clock on a QB and his rookie contract so the rest of the team can be built around them. Fields is going to be eligible for the fifth-year option this year, and whether or not Chicago signs him to that in the event they keep him is unknown.
Justin Fields is still, relatively, an unknown. While he hasn’t been a complete bust in the NFL, his play hasn’t warranted enough consideration to stick with him over a guy like USC’s Caleb Williams, who will be on a rookie deal. That’ll give more leeway to Poles and head coach Matt Eberflus to build the roster and sign veterans to a younger roster that’s been ripped to the studs since 2021. The 2024 season is a pivotal year for Chicago, with Eberflus needing some significant results in year three to warrant another year as head coach. He can buy himself some time with a new QB.
As for the keep Fields department, the case is simple: Fields is still a relative unknown at the QB spot that can be good if he’s away from the playcalling that has mired his first couple of years as a full time starter. With offensive coordinator Luke Getsy finally out of Chicago, the idea behind retaining Fields and drafting more top tier receiver talent is to further surround the QB with better tools and weapons to succeed in the NFL. With Shane Waldron coming over from Seattle, he had WRs DK Metcalf and Tyler Lockett at his disposal. Chicago has DJ Moore and…that’s it. Darnell Mooney is a free agent and will more than likely not be coming back, and the offensive line could also use more help too.
If the Bears draft a QB, they would hypothetically be entering the same situation Fields was in, and then Chicago has wasted another QB because the roster wasn’t good enough. Waldron also has experience getting the most out of QBs who were castoffs, namely two-time Pro Bowler Geno Smith. If Waldron can work the same magic with Fields as he did Smith, then that gives the Bears more of a reason to hold on for another year.
The Fields choice will truly be the one that gets the NFL Draft underway. Whether a trade happens on draft night, or while at the Combine in Indianapolis, franchises across the league will be adjusting their boards based on what they do with Fields and the first overall pick. Expect the rumblings to get louder on both sides of the discussion until a move is made.
