Do the Chicago Bears have a shot at Justin Fields in the NFL Draft?

The Chicago Bears could finally find an ounce of hope for the upcoming season if they are able to sneak out of the draft with one of the best quarterbacks in the draft class in Justin Fields.

The Chicago Bears landing a top quarterback prospect would be really cool.

According to Ian Rapoport of the NFL Network the San Francisco 49ers, who own the third pick in the draft after acquiring it from the Miami Dolphins, seem to be down to two prospects and they are Trey Lance and Mac Jones.

This could leave the first three picks looking like the Jacksonville Jaguars getting Trevor Lawrence, the New York Jets getting Zach Wilson, and the San Francisco 49ers getting one of Tre Lance or Mac Jones.

The kicker of it all is that the Atlanta Falcons, who have the fourth selection in the draft, being open to hearing trade offers for their selection. Seeing as this draft will be quarterback dominant in the early portion of the first round, the Falcons don’t need to be in the mix.

The problem for the Bears is that their pick might be too far down in the draft. Mock drafts have the Falcons selecting tight end Kyle Pitts who is arguably one of the best athletes in the draft and a bonafide prospect to be good right away.

The #20 selection in the draft might be too far down for the Falcons to have faith that their guy will still be there. There’s no question that Fields is worth trading all the way up to the fourth pick. He’s athletic and has a cannonball arm with hardly any developmental needs. The only question remains, how could the Bears finagle their way into getting him?

That question lies in the hands of general manager Ryan Pace. That is assuming that Pace would be interested in making such a trade. The only likely solution to get all the way up to the Falcons’ fourth pick in the draft is to take a step-ladder type approach.

The Bears could try to trade up to the #8 or #10 picks, held by the Carolina Panthers and the Dallas Cowboys, respectively. Both of these teams are out of the running for a quarterback and are looking to gain assets by trading down in the draft.

Giving either of these teams the #20 pick plus some day-two picks for the future or in this draft should do the job. Then, the next step becomes trying to convince the Falcons to come down to the eighth or tenth position in the draft.

After the fourth pick, the next teams in order before the eighth pick are the Cincinnati Bengals, Miami Dolphins, and Detroit Lions. None of these teams should be interested in Pitts besides possibly the Dolphins. Either way, it’s worth a shot even to get into the top ten for a quarterback.

The reason Fields is worth the trouble is because he is by far one of the most talented quarterbacks in the draft. Last year, the Ohio State Buckeyes only played eight games but Fields threw for 2,100 yards, 22 touchdowns, and six interceptions for a passer rating of 175.6 on the year. That comes down to about 262.5 yards, 2.75 touchdowns, and 0.75 interceptions per game.

There are two main reasons why Justin Fields is a good fit for the Bears.  First, Fields is easily one of the closest quarterbacks to full development and ready to be good in the NFL right away. This is important for the Bears because they need help now and the Bears don’t have the personnel to develop rookie quarterbacks.

Second, it’s a quarterback league. You will hear this phrase a bunch come Thursday night for the NFL draft but also in this generation of NFL football. Quarterbacks are important. That’s a no-brainer. The Bears have never had an all-time great quarterback. It’s time that they get one.