Bears squashing one big trade option behind closed doors

NFL teams do not think the Chicago Bears will end up trading Justin Fields this offseason.

It seems increasingly likely that Justin Fields will remain in a Chicago Bears uniform.

Despite having immense leverage with the No. 1 overall pick in the 2023 NFL Draft, the Bears are not looking to move off their franchise quarterback ahead of his third year in the league. In theory, the Bears could have traded Fields and then picked his replacement at the top of the draft in the former of either Bryce Young out of Alabama or C.J. Stroud out of Ohio State. This is not happening.

ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler reported on Sunday morning the impression that he is getting from other NFL teams is the Bears are going to keep Fields and not make him available for trade.

“Most teams I’ve talked to do expect the Bears to keep Justin Fields. The expectation is that they’d move out of that No. 1 pick.”

Although they could take either Alabama pass rusher Will Anderson Jr. or Georgia defensive tackle Jalen Carter with the No. 1 overall selection, Fowler indicates the Bears would probably prefer to trade down, give the top pick to someone else, recoup some precious draft capital and still land a high quality player somewhere inside of the top 10. This is how bad teams get better in a hurry.

This is indisputably the right call for the Chicago brass to make heading into the 2023 NFL Draft.

NFL rumors: Chicago Bears likely to keep Justin Fields and trade back from No. 1

In truth, this was not a hard decision to make. Then again, the Bears regularly make bad reads in crucial situations, such as trading up to draft Mitch Trubisky at No. 2 over better talents like Patrick Mahomes and Deshaun Watson. Since they have not a dynamic quarterback since arguably Sid Luckman, the Bears would be beyond foolish to punt on Fields before then end of his rookie deal.

Given that they gave up what is now the top pick in the second round to the Pittsburgh Steelers in the Chase Claypool trade, Chicago needs to recoup some draft capital badly. The Bears were the worst team in the NFL last season for a reason. One pick is not going to change their fortunes tremendously, but more good ones than bad over time will certainly play a part in improving them.

What really serves the Bears this spring is the bulk of the teams in a realistic position to trade up to get a quarterback at No. 1 hail from the AFC. Those teams would include the Houston Texans, the Indianapolis Colts and the Las Vegas Raiders. Houston will probably do anything to make sure it will get Young, but keep in mind that Bears head coach Matt Eberflus used to work for the Colts.

It would have been such a shame if the Bears traded Fields, but thankfully, this is not happening.