In an interview on “The Rich Eisen Show” on Super Bowl radio row Friday, Chicago quarterback Justin Fields addressed the possibility that the Bears might use the No. 1 overall draft pick on another quarterback and said he’d like the team to be transparent with him throughout the spring.
Fields was selected in the first round (11th overall) of the 2021 draft, with 2022 being his first full season as the Bears’ starter. He finished the year with 2,242 passing yards, 17 touchdowns, 11 interceptions plus 1,143 yards on the ground with eight rushing scores.
The Bears went 3-14, losing their final 10 games (Fields missed two due to injury) and passing the Houston Texans on the final day of the regular season for the worst record and top overall pick.
Fields said he had not spoken with the Bears about their plans, only having a standard exit meeting at the end of the season. Eisen asked Fields if he would want the Bears to keep him in the know if they “do their due diligence” of working out top prospects like Alabama’s Bryce Young or Ohio State’s C.J. Stroud.
“Oh, yeah, for sure. I think everybody would love honesty in the process,” Fields said, “so I would definitely like to know that. And, you know, it’s a business. So totally understand, no hard feelings. But like I said, I control what I can control. Control my work ethic, control how I carry myself each and every day.”
Fields was then asked if he felt he already has “proven (his) worth” as the Bears’ franchise quarterback.
“I think I’ve shown a little bit, but I don’t think I’ve shown the world what I can do in terms of playing the full quarterback position and playing it consistently,” Fields said, pointing to his final game against Detroit, when he completed just 7 of 21 passes for 75 yards.
Chicago general manager Ryan Poles could go a number of directions with the No. 1 pick — replace Fields with an even younger high-quality prospect, select a defensive player to help a unit that ranked last in points allowed last year or trade out with a quarterback-needy team.
–Field Level Media