The Chicago Bears fans have been feeling pretty good about their team lately. The fans know they have the number one pick locked up in the NFL draft this season due to Carolina’s bad year. The Bears will also own another first round pick of their own somewhere in the teens. The team on the field has won 5 out of their last 7 games. Which could have been 7 straight wins, but the Bears blew two double digit leads to the Browns and Lions, two playoff teams. The Bears defense is playing like one of the elite units in the game right now. The Bears season has gone from the sky is falling to bringing back the head coach, Matt Eberflus, for next season. Eberflus is under contract for next season as he looked like a guy who was going to be canned in the season. The million dollar question is: Have you seen enough improvement out of Justin Fields for him to be the man for the next 10 seasons behind center for the Bears? With the number one draft pick, the Bears would have any quarterback they want in this year’s draft. Is Fields a guy that can take the Bears to the promise land and be a Superbowl winning quarterback.

Justin Fields is only 24 years old and about to finish his third season in the NFL. Fields has played in 12 games this season & has a 5-7 record as the teams starter. Fields stats this season have tallied up 2,414 passing yards with 16 touchdown passes compared to 9 interceptions. Fields is a duel threat quarterback that can use his legs as he has ran for 630 yards with 4 rushing touchdowns. Fields completion rate this season is 61 % which is up from last year when he completed 60.4% of his passes. His first season, Fields only completed 59 % of his passes. He has had improvement each season he has been in the NFL. Fields’ career numbers in 3 seasons mean his record as a starter is 10-27 as he tallied 6,526 yards through the air and has 40 touchdown passes with 30 interceptions. He has rushed for 2,193 yards in his career with 14 rushing touchdowns. Fields has 38 fumbles in three seasons, of which ten of those happened this season. Is Fields holding on to the ball too long? Is that a lack of pocket awareness?

What if the Bears move on from Justin Fields? Which quarterback would the Bears draft with the number one pick they own from the Panthers? It’s either Caleb Williams out of USC or Drake Maye from North Carolina? Usually when it’s two hyped up quarterbacks that the experts think will change your teams landscape for the good, one of them turns out to be the boobie prize. Last year’s number one pick, Bryce Young, has not done very well in Carolina. Then you have the other Ohio State quarterback, CJ Stroud, who looks like the real deal for Houston. The Colts drafted Anthony Richardson who’s grade is an incomplete due to being injured. Richardson has not shown yet that he can take the Colts to the Superbowl. In 2021, the Jaguars picked Trevor Lawrence who revived Jacksonville’s franchise while the Jets picked the boob, Zach Wilson. In 1998 things were totally lopsided with Peyton Manning the gem compared to Ryan Leaf. I was not impressed with Williams when USC played Notre Dame during the regular season. Do the Bears take the same road picking another North Carolina quarterback in Maye after picking the dud in 2017, Trubisky the former Tarheel? The Bears have a new regime since that 2017 pick. Bears picking the right quarterback history says different. The team missed on Patrick Mahomes settling for Biscuits and gravy with Trubisky.

Last Sunday versus the Falcons, chants of Justin Fields were being bellowed out by the Soldier Field faithful. Suddenly Fields has the fan’s vote of him staying. The talk all over town is to keep Fields and draft the number one receiver in the up-coming draft. How the Bears would look with Marvin Harrison Jr. from Ohio State on one side of the field. Then Fields’ number one target, presently DJ Moore, on the other side. The dynamic duo of Moore and Harrison Jr hauling in over 60 catches each. They are both in the 1,000 yard club which has to make Bears fans dream of sugar plums inside their heads. The Bears have a nice tight end in place with Cole Kmet. The Bears have done well with their running backs by committee. I think Ryan Poles will add another piece to the offensive line that has showed significant improvement this season after 2022’s turnstyle display. Suddenly this offense looks legit.

Ryan Poles, since taking the Bears GM job, has done some very nice things. This includes how he fleeced the Panthers for DJ Moore and getting their number one pick this season as they really wanted Bryce Young in last year’ss draft. Trading Justin Fields while his stock is up. What can you get for Fields from other teams? Probably a second round pick being the highest. Fields should definitely net the team a third rounder. Teams like Atlanta, Pittsburgh, and Las Vegas make sense. If Fields heads to Atlanta, he is going home as he’s from the state of Georgia. The good thing about trading Fields is you don’t have to overpay him in a long contract extension to eat up the team’s salary cap. If the Bears like one of these rookie quarterbacks, then you’re only dealing with a rookie contract and then you can add other pieces to your roster. The only problem that arises are rookie growing pains. CJ Stroud right away showed he can play in the NFL. The Bears have a defense, play makers, and an offensive line in place. Great for a rookie quarterback to develop faster. Say his development takes three seasons to get to Justin Fields level now? Then your window may close by the time your quarterback is ready to take this team deep into the playoffs. I don’t want to see the Bears bring in washed-up veterans like Andy Dalton or others to be the back up for the rookie. You have to like what rookie Tyson Bagent did in the few games he filled in for the injured Fields.

I’m not completely sold on Justin Fields. My biggest complaint on him is in crunch time. When the Bears are in close games either tied or leading or down a score, Fields crumples under pressure. Fields running the 2 minute offense needs work. Would one more season fix all of that? I don’t know. I would use the first pick of the draft and get this team Marvin Harrison Jr. The Bears should draft another quarterback in the second or third round as an emergency plan. Every team should draft a quarterback with talented skills and have him sit a season or two and watch. The Packers do this. They did it with Aaron Rodgers and Jordan Love. The Bears have another year to see what Fields can do and at the same time have some kind of plan in place to, “Just in case break the glass.” In sports, it is very hard to break up something that is working. The Bears like to compare themselves like the Lions from last season. The Lions are in the playoffs this season. Before you give Fields the big money, I want to wait until his contract is almost done before I decide to extend him. I think Harrison Jr. improves this team. It’s a move that can set off a chain reaction of better things for this current team. If Fields does not work. If the team drafts a safety net and that does not work. You still have a great defense and two stellar play makers in Harrison and DJ Moore which will attract a quarterback. Maybe free agency. Hard to believe Chicago would be an ideal destination for a quarterback. The Bears’ key in all of this is not to be fooled by Fields’ development. If they extend him and he still likes to run like he does, injuries will limit his seasons. Fields has to be better with the football. Fields has to do better in the 2 minute offense before I extend him. Fields is middle of the pack or higher right now in quarterback play. If he wants to be in the top tier, he needs 300 yard passing games instead of 150 to 180. Seems like the norm to his aerial attack especially if you have two legit play makers on the field.