The Chicago Bears and Justin Fields finally parted ways on Saturday, with the young quarterback offloaded in a trade with the Pittsburgh Steelers in exchange for a future sixth-round draft pick, which could potentially become a fourth-rounder.
With the Bears seemingly destined to select USC quarterback Caleb Williams with the No. 1 pick, they opted to move on from Fields ahead of the draft.
Apparently, there was no shortage of interest in the 25-year-old signal-caller, with at least four other teams having inquired with the Bears about a potential Fields trade. However, Fields’s representatives preferred that the QB not be sent to any of those teams and told Chicago he wanted to join the Steelers, according to Ian Rapoport of the NFL Network.
The Bears and GM Ryan Poles did right by the former No. 11 pick, sending him to his preferred destination instead of shipping him elsewhere for maximum value. The report did not indicate which other teams were interested in Fields, nor the offers Chicago received.
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It stands to reason that Fields would draw interest on the trade market, particularly in a backup capacity, but it seems that he feels the chance to play in Pittsburgh as the second-stringer behind Russell Wilson, who signed a one-year deal with the franchise days before the Steelers acquired Fields.
Across three seasons with the Bears, Fields made 38 starts and threw 40 touchdown passes and 30 interceptions while completing 60.3% of his pass attempts. A dual threat, he racked up 14 rushing touchdowns and 2,220 yards on the ground, including 1,143 yards in 2022.
