Justin Fields, Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Mandatory Credit: Kim Klement-USA TODAY Sports
The possibility that the Bears could make a Justin Fields trade this offseason isn’t going away, so which teams could make a godfather offer to Chicago?
For a while there, it seemed like we’d moved on from the notion that, instead of trading the No. 1 pick in the 2023 NFL Draft and holding onto Justin Fields, the Chicago Bears would trade their quarterback who shined this past season despite an all-time bad supporting cast. But now those rumblings have returned.
NFL insider for Audacy (among other ventures) Jason La Canfora reported on Wednesday that the chatter among general managers at the Senior Bowl conveyed they expect the Bears to trade Justin Fields this offseason.
While I’ll still argue that’s a poor decision, the fact of the matter is that Chicago has leverage in a trade, whether they’re dealing Fields or the No. 1 pick. No matter which direction they move, they have the other option in their back pocket. That could force some big trade packages to come their way and create a bidding war.
As such, if they’re going to move on from Fields, they need to be blown away by any trade offer. Here are five trades that might accomplish that.
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Justin Fields rumors: 5 jaw-dropping trades that could make Bears budge
5. Could the Buccaneers get aggressive to replace Tom Brady with Justin Fields?
In the wake of Tom Brady’s retirement not too long ago, the belief has been that the Buccaneers plan to move forward at quarterback is to pair former second-round pick Kyle Trask with a veteran quarterback to see what they have. But what if, instead, this team looks to try and keep the wheel spinning if a Justin Fields trade is on the table?
Fields would be a fascinating successor to Brady for Tampa Bay. They are obviously wildly different players, but getting the former first-round pick still on his rookie contract would be absolutely massive for a team that has serious cap issues. More importantly, though, both Chicago and Tampa could get what they want out of this deal.
Here’s the proposed trade package that would be involved for the quarterback.
Buccaneers Get
QB Justin Fields
2024 Fifth-Round Pick
Bears Get
2023 First-Round Pick (No. 19)
WR Chris Godwin
2023 Fifth-Round Pick (No. 176)
Whether it’s Fields, Bryce Young, C.J. Stroud or whoever, the fact of the matter is that the Bears are woefully equipped at wide receiver right now. Subsequently, if they could look to the Bucs and try to help Tampa clear more cap space and getting a No. 1 option at receiver in Chris Godwin, that would be ideal.
Meanwhile, the Bucs would still have Mike Evans (he’s less relief on the cap to trade than Godwin) and then pair him with Fields and hopefully still be able to compete in a wide-open NFC South. It’s a potential win-win trade for both teams depending on if the Bucs would want to go this route to replace Brady.