The clock is ticking on the Bears' quarterback decision.
General manager Ryan Pauls said it had been scheduled to be postponed to April, but depending on the path forward, it may be in the Bears' best interest to act sooner.
If the Bears decide to move quarterback Justin Fields, trading him before the start of the new league year would be the Polish's best chance to create leverage and maximize value. If the Poles wait for the offseason quarterback merry-go-round to start and stop before making a trade for Fields, they could find themselves with limited suitors or no suitors at all.
In fact, the number of teams that may already be interested in acquiring Fields may be dwindling, given the two recent offensive coordinator hires.
The Pittsburgh Steelers and Las Vegas Raiders appeared to be Fields' likely landing spots once the 2023 season concluded.
The Steelers still don't know what they have in Kenny Pickett, but the early returns haven't been good. Despite lackluster quarterback play, the Steelers have made the playoffs in three of the past four seasons. But Pittsburgh hasn't won in the playoffs since 2016.
Fields is a young, rising quarterback with weapons in George Pickens, Diontae Johnson and Pat Freimas, an elite coach in Mike Tomlin and a top-tier defense.
The chemistry between Fields and the Steelers was clear.
The Steelers then hired former Atlanta Falcons head coach Arthur Smith as their offensive coordinator.
The fit has evaporated.
Smith's run-heavy attack had success in Tennessee with Ryan Tannehill, but he was unable to replicate that magic in Atlanta with Desmond Ridder, Marcus Mariota and Matt Ryan.
On the surface, it makes sense for Fields to run Smith's power-run offense with heavy play-action, and could be a revitalizer for the Steelers' offense, which has been dormant the past few seasons. be.
However, it is understood around the league that Smith was not a fan of Fields, who came out of Ohio State, and while the Falcons were interested in drafting Trey Lance in the 2021 draft, the San Francisco 49ers They took the North Dakota State quarterback at No. 3. Fields could have been drafted fourth overall, but the Falcons took tight end Kyle Pitts instead, losing Fields to the Bears.
Smith may have had a change of heart, especially after Fields had the best game of his career against Atlanta last season.
But for now, the Fields-to-Pittsburgh scenario is on hold.
That brings us to Silver and Black.
The Raiders have the best receiver in football in Davante Adams in the run game led by Josh Jacobs and a young defensive head coach in Antonio Pierce. In a division with Patrick Mahomes and Justin Herbert, the Raiders will need more than Aidan O'Connell to catch up.
Again, Fields seemed like a good fit for Las Vegas. A second-round pick and an early second- or third-day pick could get the deal done.
On Thursday, the Raiders hired former Arizona Cardinals head coach Kliff Kingsbury as offensive coordinator.
Kingsbury's Air Raid system likely won't fit Field's skill set, and his selection suggests the Raiders plan to move one of their top three quarterbacks higher up the draft board. There is a possibility that Kingsbury is in desperate need of a quarterback. Kingsbury coached Caleb Williams at USC last season. The 2022 Heisman Trophy winner would be a perfect fit, but LSU's Jaden Daniels also feels like a great quarterback option for Kingsbury's system.
Assuming neither the Raiders nor the Steelers enter the Fields sweepstakes. That leaves only a handful of teams as realistic options, with the Atlanta Falcons likely leading the way. The New England Patriots could be a dark horse, depending on how new head coach Jerod Mayo and new offensive coordinator Alex Van Pelt evaluate their quarterback class. If the Patriots only like one or two of their top three players and they are out of New England's lineup by the end of the game, the Patriots could draft Marvin Harrison Jr. at No. 3 and then It's easy to imagine a scenario where they trade Fields.
Perhaps Smith's feelings toward Fields have changed, or perhaps Tomlin is a fan and pushed for a deal. Perhaps Kingsbury and Pierce have different views on Fields' adaptation to the Air Raid, or perhaps believe they can tweak the plan to suit his strengths.
Neither team is off the roster, but Fields' landing spot now looks less likely on both teams than it did a week ago.
This only increases the pressure on the Poles and the Bears' brain trust to make a decision and execute a plan within the next month. Waiting until April is no longer an option.
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