The Chicago Bears are on the cusp of again being at the center of the football universe, as what the franchise decides to do with the top pick in the draft will soon become the main question around the NFL.
General manager Ryan Poles is keeping his cards close to the vest yet again, after ultimately dealing the No. 1 overall selection last year. But whichever way Chicago is leaning, one outcome is near a certainty — a blockbuster trade is coming.
The Bears will either move the top pick for a king’s ransom or use it to draft a generational prospect, at which point Justin Fields most likely hits the trade market. The majority of NFL analysts believe the latter path is the one Chicago will ultimately tread.
Cody Benjamin of CBS Sports is one of them, and on December 22, 2023, he named the Seattle Seahawks among the five most logical trade partners for Fields this offseason.
“Geno Smith just landed a new deal as their veteran starter last offseason, but his injury-riddled season may not stop Seattle from exploring younger alternatives, as team brass did around the 2023 draft,” Benjamin wrote. “Smith can be designated a post-June 1 cut to save $22.5 million.”
New Seahawks Regime Likely to Consider QB Change, Putting Justin Fields in Play
Seahawks Head coach Pete Carroll and QB Geno Smith.
GettyFormer Seattle Seahawks head coach Pete Carroll (left) and quarterback Geno Smith (right).
The Seahawks are a franchise in transition after firing head coach Pete Carroll on January 10 in a move that surprised most around the NFL. While the team has yet to name his replacement, interviews are ongoing and whomever succeeds Carroll is likely to want his own choice under center.
Seattle played too well to put itself in a position to draft one of the top two or three QB prospects in the 2024 draft, all of whom could come off the board before the Arizona Cardinals go on the clock at No. 4. That doesn’t preclude the Seahawks from drafting a quarterback, though they’re more likely to do so later in the draft, perhaps trading down from the No. 16 overall pick or using it on a signal-caller.
The problem with that strategy is that it probably doesn’t put a starter under center in the immediate. Seattle doesn’t select again until the third round (Nos. 78 and 81), which puts the franchise in a bind. It can draft a QB with upside who needs work in the mid- to late-first round, it can stick with Smith who regressed in 2023 or it can pursue a pricey veteran in free agency.
Justin Fields May Not Have 1st-Round Trade Value Now, but that Could Change
Justin Fields, Bears
GettyQuarterback Justin Fields of the Chicago Bears.
Fields is arguably a better solution than all those aforementioned three. The structure of his contract will keep Fields cost-controlled for the next two years, with a fifth-year option in the cards to extend the deal through 2025.
He’s also a dual-threat QB and only 24 years old, which will afford the Seahawks’ next head coach the ability to build a roster and offensive scheme around Fields’ talents.
The general consensus around the NFL in early January was that Fields’ trade value resides with a pick somewhere in the second or third round, per ESPN’s Courtney Cronin and Jeremy Fowler. But that is liable to change as teams start to evaluate their options at quarterback, taking into consideration Fields’ age, price, unteachable physical skill set and the support he’s built within the Bears locker room and fan base.
Seattle falls within the selection of teams that may still need a starter after free agency dries up and before the draft rolls around in late April. If that’s the case, Fields will probably appear a strong candidate potentially worthy of a mid-first round pick.
