Recently, The Athletic interviewed eight different NFL coaches and executives in a brilliant, inventive story about Justin Fields' trade value this offseason.
Here are the key insights from trainers and managers.
“The majority believe the Bears would select in the second or third round, but there were some differences in those answers,” Jeff Howe wrote. “One manager said he would be worth a second-rounder or equivalent in a package of a third- and fifth-round pick.”
“Two other executives assumed the return would be a second-rounder or third-rounder, depending on where the pick is in the round. Another believed it could be a third-round pick in 2025 that could become a second-rounder based on certain statistical benchmarks.”
According to the report, there were two outliers. One coach believes a first-round pick could be in play due to “supply and demand.” According to this theory, the Bears would have to trade Fields soon. NFL free agency opens on March 13 and quarterbacks will quickly disappear from the market.
The other outlier, according to Howe, was a coach who said he would only select Fields in the third round. One manager told Howe, “There’s a reason they keep going.”
Recently, NFL Goliath reporter Adam Schefter commented on “The Pat McAfee Show” about what he thinks the Bears will get in return for Fields.
“Sam Darnold is perhaps the most relevant compensation comparison to me when you talk to people,” Schefter said. “…I think Justin Fields' compensation is somewhere between what Alex Smith got and what Sam Darnold brought.”
When the Jets moved on from Darnold in 2021 to sign Zach Wilson, they sent him to Carolina in exchange for a 2021 sixth-round pick, a 2022 second-round pick and a 2022 fourth-round pick. That's a nice return for a quarterback the Bears hypothetically would have no use for.
We should know what's going on with Fields in the next few weeks. General manager Ryan Poles told the media that if the Bears decide to go that route, he would prefer to please Fields and move him as quickly as possible.
“Nobody wants to live in gray, I know it’s uncomfortable,” Poles said Tuesday. “I don’t want to be in this situation either. So we're going to gather the information, we're going to move as quickly as possible, we're not going to be in a rush and we're going to see what comes up and what's best for the organization.”
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