Justin Fields of the Bears is traded in a blockbuster deal to the NFC West for a first-round pick……
The Chicago Bears are about to take the football world by storm once more, as the NFL’s biggest debate will shortly revolve around what the team does with its first-round selection.
After handing the No. 1 overall pick last year, general manager Ryan Poles is once again holding his cards close to his chest. Regardless of Chicago’s stance, one thing is almost certain: a blockbuster deal will occur.
The Bears will either move the top pick for a king’s ransom or use it to draft a generational prospect, at which point Justin Fields most likely hits the trade market. The majority of NFL analysts believe the latter path is the one Chicago will ultimately tread.
Cody Benjamin of CBS Sports is one of them, and on December 22, 2023, he named the Seattle Seahawks among the five most logical trade partners for Fields this offseason.
“Geno Smith just landed a new deal as their veteran starter last offseason, but his injury-riddled season may not stop Seattle from exploring younger alternatives, as team brass did around the 2023 draft,” Benjamin wrote. “Smith can be designated a post-June 1 cut to save $22.5 million.”
The Seahawks are a franchise in transition after firing head coach Pete Carroll on January 10 in a move that surprised most around the NFL. While the team has yet to name his replacement, interviews are ongoing and whomever succeeds Carroll is likely to want his own choice under center. Seattle played too well to put itself in a position to draft one of the top two or three QB prospects in the 2024 draft, all of whom could come off the board before the Arizona Cardinals go on the clock at No. 4. That doesn’t preclude the Seahawks from drafting a quarterback, though they’re more likely to do so later in the draft, perhaps trading down from the No. 16 overall pick or usingThat tactic has the drawback of perhaps not immediately placing a starter beneath centre. Seattle finds itself in a difficult situation because it doesn’t make another selection until the third round (Nos. 78 and 81). It can stick with Smith, who regressed in 2023, draft a QB with promise who needs improvement in the mid-to late-first round, or pursue an expensive veteran in free agency.
Fields is possibly a superior option than the first three stated. Fields’s contract structure will limit his expenses for the next two years, and a fifth-year option to extend the agreement until 2025 is planned.
In addition, Fields is a dual-threat quarterback who is only 24 years old, so the next head coach of the Seahawks will have the opportunity to design an offensive strategy and roster around his strengths.
The general consensus around the NFL in early January was that Fields’ trade value resides with a pick somewhere in the second or third round, per ESPN’s Courtney Cronin and Jeremy Fowler. But that is liable to change as teams start to evaluate their options at quarterback, taking into consideration Fields’ age, price, unteachable physical skill set and the support he’s built within the Bears locker room and fan base.
Seattle falls within the selection of teams that may still need a starter after free agency dries up and before the draft rolls around in late April. If that’s the case, Fields will probably appear a strong candidate potentially worthy of a mid-first round pick.
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