Chicago Bears president Kevin Warren had quite a bit of praise for starting quarterback Justin Fields in a recent interview.
Fields, who has slowly but surely improved during each season of his three-year NFL career, has earned a supporter in Warren.
“Justin has a rare combination of intelligence, of size, of strength, and speed. You forget how big of a man he is until you’re up on him. He’s not a small man. I just think every year, he’s going to continually get better. So I’m glad he’s on the Chicago Bears,” Warren said. “I’m a supporter of Justin. … He is incredibly talented, he is smart, he works hard, and he wants to be a great NFL football player. And so now he just needs to make sure he has the support around him.”
Justin Fields: Still the Bears’ quarterback of the future?
Bears QB Justin Fields carries the weight of the city of Chicago on his shoulders
Warren seems to be in support of Fields coming back for a fourth season in what would almost certainly be a make-or-break year for the Ohio State product. In 40 career games for Chicago and thrown for 6,674 yards, 40 touchdowns, and 30 interceptions. He’s also rushed for 2,220 yards and 14 touchdowns in his career, with his 2022 campaign being one of just four seasons in NFL history in which a quarterback has thrown for more than 2,000 yards and rushed for more than 1,000 yards.
The Bears have languished at or near the bottom of the NFL for the entirety of Fields’ career, however. In his 38 starts, Chicago is 10-28, and the Bears hold the No. 1 overall pick in the 2024 NFL draft for the second straight year.
In 2023, the Bears traded the pick to the Carolina Panthers, which netted them the first pick this year and makes Warren’s comments all that more interesting. Two of the top players on the board are USC’s Caleb Williams and North Carolina’s Drake Maye, who are projected to be game-changing quarterbacks at the next level.
Warren seemed to indicate the Bears may “replicate” last year’s draft strategy, though, which may involve the Bears trading down and be a positive development for Fields and his immediate future in Chicago.
“If we can replicate back-to-back years to really be smart about how we handle our draft capital, it could be a really special time for the Chicago Bears,” Warren said.
If a team trades up to draft Williams or Maye with the first overall pick, the Bears would likely want to stay near the top of the order to select a player like Ohio State wide receiver Marvin Harrison Jr. or Washington wide receiver Rome Odunze.
Fields will be entering the final guaranteed season of his contract. He will have a $6,004,713 cap hit this year, which would be reduced to under $3 million in dead cap if the Bears traded him.
