We all know the final result. The Chicago Bears traded Justin Fields to the Pittsburgh Steelers for a conditional draft pick. It was a 6th rounder. However, if Fields ended up playing 51% of the offensive snaps this season, it would convert to a 4th rounder. Most people thought there was no way that would happen. Not with Russell Wilson as Fields’ competition. Well, a calf injury has kept Wilson sidelined for weeks. Fields has gone 3-0 in his absence, making it almost impossible to justify benching him.
If things progress at this rate, the Bears will get that 4th rounder. Still, many have wondered what other offers they got before making the deal with Pittsburgh. Is a conditional pick really all they could get? The part to remember here is Chicago allowed Fields to have a say in where he went, something they weren’t obligated to do. Finally, during an appearance on Cam Heyward’s podcast, the quarterback revealed three other teams who made a run at him based on what he heard.
“I’m not sure of all the teams, but there were a lot of teams that already had solidified quarterbacks and I didn’t want to do that. Chargers were one, Ravens were another. Raiders, they talked a little bit. I don’t know too much. Who else was in there I don’t know, but a lot of teams had solidified quarterbacks who just got new contracts so I didn’t want to be there.”
The Los Angeles Chargers are obvious. They already have Justin Herbert, and nobody would unseat him as the starter. Baltimore has Lamar Jackson, the reigning league MVP. No chance Fields plays there unless there’s an injury. Now, Las Vegas is an interesting one. He said the teams already had established quarterbacks, but that wasn’t the case for the Raiders. They were deciding between Aidan O’Connell and Gardner Minshew, two career backups. Fields would’ve had a great chance to win that job.
It is more likely he didn’t want to go there because of their coaching situation. Antonio Pierce was on uncertain ground and Luke Getsy was the new offensive coordinator. Justin Fields didn’t have the best experience with him in Chicago. Once Pittsburgh became an option with Mike Tomlin in charge, it was an easy decision. Rather than fight the situation, the Bears acquiesced to his wishes. It seems things turned out well for him. Of course that didn’t stop Fields from taking a dig at Chicago’s coaches later in the podcast.
