Ian Rapoport reports that the Bears are trading QB Justin Fields to the Steelers on Saturday.
According to Adam Schefter, the Bears are trading a conditional 2025 sixth-round pick that can improve to a fourth-round pick if Fields played 51 percent of the snaps in 2024.
A source tells Tom Pelissero: “Russ is the starter.”
Fields posted a goodbye the city of Chicago:
Can’t say thank you enough to the city of Chicago for taking me in and embracing me. Thank you to the entire Bears organization and ownership for allowing me the opportunity to be part of such a historic franchise. But most of all thank you to my all my brothers that I played… pic.twitter.com/fT1dORwFU5
— Justin Fields (@justnfields) March 16, 2024
The trade market for Fields had been slowing moving this offseason, which resulted in a number of teams signing other quarterbacks to start while others have already gone and added backup options.
Reports had said that the Bears were hoping to get a second-round pick for Fields this offseason, but it’s clear the NFL didn’t value him at that level based on this compensation.
The Steelers, do however, make sense for Fields, given that they currently only have Russell Wilson on a one-year deal. Fields also has a year remaining on his rookie contract and while Fields has a fifth-year option to be picked up, it’s pretty clear that the Steelers won’t go this route based on what they gave up for him.
Fields, 24, was selected in the first round of the 2021 NFL Draft by the Bears. Chicago traded up to No. 15 overall with the Giants to get Fields and parted with their 2022 first-round pick in the process.
He signed a four-year rookie deal worth $18,871,956 with a signing bonus of $11,085,059. The Bears will have a fifth-year option to pick up on him in 2024 worth $21.978 million guaranteed for the 2025 season.
In 2023, Fields appeared in 13 games for the Bears and completed 61.4 percent of his pass attempts for 2,562 yards, 16 touchdowns and nine interceptions. He also rushed 124 times for 657 yards and four touchdowns.
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