Work’s got me twisted up lately, but Nick & I managed to squeeze in a Bear With Us episode last night that focused on the Super Bowl & the latest in Bears rumors. Check it out.
Also, I wrote one of my patented extremely long tweets yesterday — I know Justin Fields is an emotional topic for many, and I wanted to write an olive branch.
It’s not perfectly written, but the heart behind it is authentic — Justin has done nothing to deserve the overbearing critiques he’s getting from many. Frankly, I think plenty of his critics are taking things too far. He’s been nothing but a hardworking representative of the Chicago Bears and we love him for that, even if I believe it’s best that Fields and the Bears part ways this offseason.
From the moment he was drafted, Justin Fields was labeled ‘The Prince That Had Been Promised” by many (including myself). He was supposed to be the franchise savior, Ryan Pace’s bold new direction that would save the franchise from over a decade of organizational failure. He was the golden ticket that would overcome anything, including the impending rebuild that no one wanted to acknowledge — somehow, despite a roster dissolving around him, he would simply rise above it all and lead Chicago forward.
Things didn’t quite work out that way. Fields delivered the most magical stretch of games I’ve ever watched in 2022, but the Year 3 ‘leap’ we’d spent the offseason waiting for didn’t happen in 2023. Fields shouldn’t be villainized for that — if Carolina had delivered a more normal draft pick (say #7), I’d likely be writing this column about “how important it is to look at your QB options in the draft” before ultimately realizing that adding talent around Justin Fields would yield much better results than turning the reigns over to Jayden Daniels, Bo Nix, or Michael Penix in a make-or-break 2024 season.
That’s the bad luck of it all — Carolina didn’t just deliver a high pick, they delivered the #1 overall pick in a draft class with two QBs worth the selection.
It’s brutal timing for Justin Fields, frankly unfair. After all of the criticism he endured in Chicago, it feels like he deserved the chance to lead the most talented Bears roster in years. But the #1 overall pick presents a once-in-a-generation opportunity that Chicago cannot pass up on, and in illustrating that opportunity Fields once again has to endure criticism that, at this point, feels belabored.
It’s a frustrating time to be a Bears fan. We could be excited about the gluttonous excess of opportunities in front of us, but instead fans seem focused on the fear that Ryan Poles may get this decision wrong. Everyone (myself included) sees an “obvious” answer… but clearly it’s not so obvious, is it?
Someone I love reached out to me, I want to clarify something:
I absolutely loved seeing the #Bears trade up for Justin Fields. That’s who I wanted Chicago to take in 2020, but I thought drafting him was a pipe dream. When it actually happened, I was over the moon — I still… pic.twitter.com/rQGazv9XFp
— Robert Schmitz (@robertkschmitz) February 13, 2024
Whatever happens, thank you Justin Fields. That Patriots game in New England was a game I’ll never forget, and that 2022 run was truly the stuff of legends.
But for now, that’s about all that can be said. Ryan Poles has a decision to make, and all we can do is wait for him to make it.
Your Turn: How are you feeling about the QB situation?