By the time news broke that the Chicago Bears had traded Justin Fields to the Pittsburgh Steelers for a late-round pick, it was hardly a surprise.
The amount of logical landing spots for Fields had quickly dwindled in the early days of the 2024 new league year. The Atlanta Falcons were long viewed as a possible suitor for Fields, but they were the lucky winners of the Kirk Cousins sweepstakes.
The Minnesota Vikings were happy to settle on Sam Darnold as a temporary solution for Cousins, signing the former first-round pick to a one-year deal:
The Washington Commanders and New England Patriots will likely take quarterbacks with the No. 2 and No. 3 picks. The Las Vegas Raiders and New York Giants added QB depth by signing Gardner Minshew II and Drew Lock, respectively, to compete with their starting signal-callers.
According to a report from Courtney Cronin and Brooke Pryor of ESPN, the Steeles were among the six teams that contacted the Bears about a possible trade for Justin Fields:
A source told ESPN that five teams in addition to Pittsburgh reached out to Chicago, and the majority of those teams had envisioned the former first-round pick in a backup role. Additionally, the Steelers had been in talks with the Bears throughout the week of free agency and reached out again after sending Kenny Pickett to the Philadelphia Eagles on Friday.”
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Fields will start out in Pittsburgh as a backup to Russell Wilson, as head coach Mike Tomlin reportedly informed the young QB that the nine-time Pro Bowler is the QB1 for now. Wilson was signed to a one-year deal for the veteran’s minimum following his release from the Denver Broncos.
The acquisition of Fields came just one day after the Steelers dealt Kenny Pickett to the Philadelphia Eagles in another blockbuster move.
Justin Fields’ Career Stats
Justin Fields appeared in 40 games over his three seasons as the Bears’ starting quarterback. He went 10-28-0 in those games, completing 60.3 percent of pass attempts for 40 touchdowns and 30 interceptions.
Fields was more prolific in the ground game, racking up 2,220 rushing yards and 14 rushing touchdowns. Fields joined the rare club of QBs to rush for 1K in a season, racking up 1,143 yards on the ground in the 2022 season.
