The Bears won their first game of 2023 on Thursday Night Football against the Commanders. And for the second game in a row, quarterback Justin Fields looked capable of being a star quarterback in the NFL.
However, Fields' performance doesn't have people changing their minds about his future in Chicago. Instead, the biggest talking point from TNF was the possibility of Bears trading the quarterback now that he's given his value a bit of a boost.
Which teams should already be knocking on the Bears' door?
The Jets should trade for Justin Fields even with Aaron Rodgers coming back
The Jets have already suffered the injury that should prompt them to trade for Fields. When Aaron Rodgers first went down, however, Fields looked far less viable than he does after promising performances in Week 4 against the Broncos and Week 5 against the Commanders.
It's more and more clear that the Bears have misused Fields. He's a far more capable quarterback than Zach Wilson has been at any point in his career.
The Bears could be in line for Caleb Williams with the No. 1 overall pick, so moving on from Fields makes sense. The Jets have Aaron Rodgers likely coming back for the 2024 season, but Fields could fill in for the rest of 2023 and then serve as a backup plan in 2024 while learning and growing in Nathaniel Hackett's system. Then he could be primed to take the reins in 2025.
Who else should be looking Fields' way?
The Falcons can give up on Desmond by giving Justin Fields a chance
The Falcons have one of the worst quarterback situations in the NFL currently.
Ridder just doesn't look like an NFL starter. At best he's a game manager but he's not finding ways to get the most out of his playmakers. He ranks 31st in QBR among the 33 quarterbacks to qualify this season.
If the team had any long-term faith in Taylor Heinicke they'd already be starting him.
The Falcons have too many strong receiving targets and offensive weapons to keep the status quo. So a trade to land Fields makes some sense.
If Fields keeps playing like he's played the last two weeks, he could be the guy in Atlanta. He certainly has the skillset to pair with Bijan Robinson in the ground game. And as we've seen with DJ Moore, Fields can dish the ball when he's used properly. With Fields providing a broader set of skills behind center, Kylie Pitts and Drake London could finally spread their wings.
Ridder hasn't had a single game in his career that proves he can reach the heights Fields has shown at multiple points in his still-young career. The swap would at least give the Falcons a chance going forward.
The Patriots can get more from Justin Fields than Mac Jones
What are the New England Patriots doing? Seriously. It couldn't have been more clear this offseason that the franchise doesn't believe in Mac Jones as their long-term future. They've shuffled around quarterbacks behind him so there hasn't been a viable replacement either.
So it's time to cut bait and go after a quarterback that Bill O'Brien can actually get something out of.
Jones was always going to have a slightly more limited ceiling than Fields. The Patriots were essentially counting on him to be a game manager while Fields has an arm and rushing ability to be a star if he puts it all together. And we've seen him do that when the playcalling is suited to his skill set. The Bears have unlocked Fields in spurts. Perhaps O'Brien could get him playing at that level consistently.
Of course, the Patriots are the last team you'd expect to make that bold move. It's not Bill Belichick's way. But Belichick's way hasn't exactly worked since Tom Brady took his talents south. Desperate times call for desperate measures.
Continuing with Jones is futile. Picking up Fields is a risk but one with high reward.
