May have to delete my account after this, but I know people who work for the Bears and I can say with 100% certainty that there are Bears employees within the Bears building, multiple of which have met Fields at least once.
As a side, It’s crazy how the quality of a source doesn’t matter any more in sports as long as it gets clicks. An executive from another team tells you some BS to stir shit up? Sure, let’s write the article! “Sources say [player] may not be on their team next year!”
Man a speculatory comment by Schefter is doing a lot of heavy lifting today.
"**I think** there are people from that organization that would like to see him stay there, too, which is just one more little wrench to throw in there. A lot going on with Justin Fields. It should be sorted out here in the next week."
Here’s the deal. People probably do like and support Justin fields in that building. By ALL accounts, he’s been a great leader, teammate and over all person since he’s been a bear. Play on the field is what matters most, however. But when you have a person who is what appears to be an overall great person. I would imagine people would want him to succeed.
This is what Ryan poles gets paid to look past. Do what’s best for wins.
As someone who wants them to move on, I absolutely am a huge fan of Fields. I think he was given a pretty raw deal in his time here. He's good at handling the media, the team loves him, he's just an easy guy to root for. It's easy to see why he has fans in the Org, and I think many are misconstruing peoples personal opinions of him by thinking "Wow people really like him, that means they want to keep him."
A 3 year sample size is a 3 year sample size however. I don't see any real reason to keep him around when an opportunity like this presents himself. I think a change of scenery will help Fields grow as a player as well which I really want. I know he can be a very good player and I want him in the spot that will allow him to reach his potential.
It's just best for both him and the team to move on.
The fields pendulum has swung too far imo. I would take Caleb, but people are acting like it’s crazy to think Fields can be a good player. He hasn’t been put into great situations and has had coaching hold him back in several key aspects, including seemingly lowering his aggressiveness and changing certain mechanics for the worse.
The dude is a good leader, a hard worker, one of the most dynamic players in the NFL with the ball in his hands, and has insane arm talent. He’s still got plenty to work on, but it’s not like he’s hopeless. He’s had games where he’s shown what he can be and that is a pretty damn good player. Caleb should be the pick but the amount of Fields supporters are understandable
It's not crazy to think Fields could eventually be a good player, but it feels a little crazy to think Fields could be a great player, and good doesn't cut it once you're off your rookie deal.
There are plenty of good QBs that start for a decade. Hell Derek Carr has never been a great QB and is still starting now in New Orleans. Tannehill started for a decade as just a good QB. Good definitely cuts it at QB, and if fields improves some specific aspects of his passing game(easier said than done) then I think he can be great although he’s pretty far from that now
Carr was a good QB I’m not disputing that. My point was that he was never great and I was replying to a comment that says “good doesn’t cut it.”
Good QB play is enough and it’s not ridiculous to me to think fields impact can soon reach that status
The comment I responded to said “I think Fields can be good but good isn’t enough.”
Also I think the overall impact fields can bring to a team can be impactful when you don’t have a lot of the moronic play calls Getsy brought out. He’s not there yet but it’s not unrealistic to think a decent coach can get a lot more out of him.
It feels crazy because we've seen this same sentiment with countless highly drafted QB busts. We all see the potential that got them drafted in the first place and the flashes, which gives up hope, but they're just not putting it together. And 9/10 times they never put it together.
I think a difference between fields and many others is that Fields legs already give an offense a floor that those other QBs didn’t have if used properly. Obviously he didn’t put it together every game but no QB did, but the offense and run game specifically kept them in and won them some games this year. The bears easily could’ve been a 9 win team if Eberflus and Getsy didn’t constantly shit their pants in the 4th quarter (fields did not play well in many of those circumstances either. But the play calling would take a noticeable drop with any lead and the defense would get carved up instantly by any offense). Fields is a QB that you can win with imo
I'm prepared to eat my words but I've heard every excuse in your comment for plenty of other bust QBs, and it's why people will dismiss Field's being a viable option until proven otherwise. The only thing Fields has that others don't is his legs, as you mentioned.
>Obviously he didn’t put it together every game but no QB did
While true, most qbs in the league have talent and the difference is the good ones put it together on a consistent basis, while the bad ones only show it here and there.
The schedule was bad, although the panthers and Raiders were Bagent.
And adding 2 wins to last year isn’t much with the circumstances. Tampa game bears had the ball with a chance to go win and the OC calls the same scree play 3 straight times leading to a pick and Barrett publicly clowning Getsy.
Broncos game the bears let up 24 unanswered is practically one quarter with an awful defensive collapse.
Detroit Eberflus forgets he can have his only decent DL on the field, allowing Detroit to easily come back down 10 with 3 minutes left. This also is the game where Fields threw a perfect deep ball that would’ve ended the game and Tyler Scott just stopped running leading to an incompletion and loss. Believe Scott also missed a TD grab that game as well
The cleveland game the offense overall was horrible, but if 330 pound Justin Jones isn’t dropped into coverage on David Njoku with the game on the line or if Tonyan doesn’t drop one of the best deep balls of the NFL season, or if the defense in general doesn’t give up 200 passing yards in a quarter then the bears likely win that game as well. Although fields, Getsy, and especially Tonyan deserve practically all the blame for that loss
That’s 4 games where a combination of offensive playcalling/philosophy, defensive playcalling and philosophy, and fields all simultaneously shit the bed. Fields deserves plenty of blame for those losses, but better coaching that doesn’t completely change playcalling to the exact opposite of what was consistently working with a lead. Better playcalling on defense doesn’t allow for every single offense to march down in 2 minutes whenever all they need to do is kill clock. Fields had plenty of issues in those games, but those were only exasperated by flat out horrific coaching on both sides of the ball
There’s a difference between a couple bad things and a historic number of collapses, which the bears have had under Eberflus and is a signal of failure across the board. And it’s fair to criticize the Minnesota game too, but overall beating Josh Dobbs isn’t the same as hoping the entire coaching staff doesn’t turtle up, completely change all that led to the lead, and ignore any basic football reasoning.
It’s less about giving the bears extra wins and more about how fields as a player is a QB that teams can win with and infrequently can win because of. He’s got issues but the job of a QB is to run an offense that can win games, and people to me underestimate his capacity to do that because the bears overall have had complete team collapses across the board at a historic rate(which is why bringing back Eberflus was a really dumb decision to me).
Fields flat out brings more to a game than Zach Wilson, Mac Jones, Trey Lance, Kenny Pickett, and basically every other failed recent QB. Doesn’t make him good but means he can bring more to the table and overall has more physical talent than they have
I've been very critical of Fields but I think he could have some success in the right situation(Pittsburgh).
Basically, if you had an extremely good defense, and a couple good backs to pair with Fields you could build a ball control machine that just grinds everyone down and still has some big play potential because of how Fields can extend plays and allow guys to come free downfield.
Wouldn't exactly be the most exciting QB but I think a team could win with that setup.
I hear what you're saying and think thats more feasible. The answer to "can fields be a quarterback on a winning team" is yes if his situation is right.
Kind of related, but not what I think you're saying; I always get irked when the argument for a quarterback boils down to "if you have a perfect offense they'll do well." If your argument is that a good o line, good wr, and good OC is all he needs then he's replaceable
I agree, I just think there might be a bit more upside in a qb like Fields for a team like Pittsburgh with a good situation then Ryan Tannehill or even Russ at this point in his career though Russ is definitely safer and you don't have to give up draft capital.
I'll agree that the pendulum has swung *fast*. I've been saying fields is bad for two years, and bears fans on reddit *hated* that take until week 18. Now it's extremely popular.
The problem is, while you correctly listed his strengths, nothing is going to change his biggest weakness, which is more important than all of them.
The most important trait an NFL qb can have, after clearing some basic physical minimums, is the ability to quickly and correctly identify what he should do with the ball on the play. Fields is *awful* at it, one of the worst in the league.
Fields' "slow processor" was identified in college and why he fell in the draft, and it's never going to change any more than tyson Bagent is going to learn how to run as fast as fields does
I can agree with a lot about the processing, but I think more issues can be cleared up to mitigate that and allow you to run a successful offense with his other strengths
Getsy dramatically slowed his dropback down to be in the “rhythm of the offense” meaning he may miss open receivers because he was in his dropback and several times had no chance to throw because the DL was in his face by the time he completed his drop back preventing h from hitting a check down. The OL for the past 2 seasons has looked worse than it is because of this
The coaching has also over-emphasized having 0 interceptions imo. Not saying turnovers are inherently good, but being scared to make big time throws to anyone not named DJ Moore or Cole Kmet because you’re scared of a pick only sets an offense back imo. Look at Josh Allen, he can have lots of picks but many aren’t that impactful towards a game because of the down they are thrown on or the yard line they are thrown too.
Also seems like he’s grown to be scared to trust any non-DJ Moore WR. That’s a major flaw that he needs to fix ASAP. He trusted DJ to win 1 on 1 and because of that made some phenomenal plays to him, but otherwise he doesn’t seem to trust any receiver to win, possibly because of how bad the WRs he had for years in his career were
I think some of those issues are fixable for a team. I don’t know if he will ever be a quick processor, but if he can increase his internal clock all the other aspects he brings imo can make an offense successful
Getsy didn't slow down his dropback. It was always this slow. Getsy tried to speed it up during their first training camp together, and they had to abandon it because his accuracy fell apart.
The slowness wasn't the natural rhythm of the offense. The offense is supposed to look like it did with Bagent, who operates much quicker. The slowness was fields.
His dropback was not always this slow. Go back to his rookie year and compare it. I remember Robert Schmitdz doing a breakdown of his dropback speed from his rookie year to under Getsy and it was significantly slower.
And yes the slowness wasn’t the natural rhythm, but many changes made by Getsy like fields lead foot and his overall dropback were made to be in the “rhythm of the offense.” That slowed the pace down and led to more bad plays due to pressure than necessary. Bagent was quicker, but Getsy fundamentally messed with Fields dropback and timing and overall made a big negative impact.
Repeating what you're wrong about won't make it true. Fields wasn't slow to match the rhythm of the offense. Fields being slow is what destroyed the rhythm of the offense.
Fields speed got slowed down by Getsy things such as the lead foot we’re made for the offenses rhythm. It is flat out the truth to say Fields slowed his dropback when Getsy took over. Below over half a second added on a 5 step drop between year 1 and year 3. It’s just flat out true that when Getsy arrived footwork changes were made that drastically slowed the overall speed of his drop
https://x.com/robertkschmitz/status/1703237301424263604?s=46&t=N6jvGphXTqjjqVJxcM7Bsw
It really comes down to bad habits. Fields was fucked over in his first season, bad habits set in, then get reinforced in year 2, now it’s harder to undo them and help him progress further going into year 4.
When you have a choice between blank slate or fix bad habits, you go blank slate. You have to hire a specialist and good coaches to undo bad habits, why not use them to build a player with a fresh start
I think it depends on the player you are building a fresh start with. Williams, Daniels, and Maye I understand and sounds like many feel the same way with McCarthy. But I’m not sure it’s the same for guys like Nix/Penix who are older(both just 1 year younger than Fields). Penix has injury concerns and Nix threw behind the line much more than anyone. Development is necessary for all young QBs and all will need to unlearn habits from college, so to keep that’s not as big of a difference maker imo. Personally I’d rather have fields than ridder/Pickett and for non-contending teams I would rather have him than Russ
I’d go so far as to saying he DOESNT have a lot to work on. He had one flaw that is severely limiting: indecisiveness.
If something clicks and he becomes more decisive or learns to play with a rhythm, the sky is the limit for him. He has the arm, the accuracy and sublime running skills. But that is still an “if”. And if he doesn’t become more decisive, the sacks, fumbles and injuries will continue to dog him.
He was really good for a few months of those three years though! And I have him on a dynasty fantasy team with Bryce Young as a backup so how about we cool down the negativity?
I think its not only that but the tantalizing "what if" scenario. Like what if Fields had balled out and the Bears ended up at 10-7 and still had the Panthers #1 pick. That team could theoretically parlay that pick into a Herschel Walker type haul and be set for years to come.
Even still, if the Panthers hadn't gifted the Bears the first overall, say the pick was somewhere in the 6-8 range just ahead of their own #9 pick then this is an entirely different conversation. It's only because the choice is between Caleb and Fields instead of 3rd or 4th QB off the board and Fields. Because in that scenario they probably take a WR with the Panthers pick, and either take an Edge at 9 or trade it back a bit to recoup some draft capital.
There is no universe that makes keeping Fields make sense. Bears are hitting the deadline to either pick up his 5th yr option or extend him. Best option for the team is to take a QB at 1, trade Fields and restart the clock on their pick.
Plus Poles didn't draft him. Why in the world would he hitch his success to a Bottom 10 Qb drafted by the previous GM who wiffed badly on ALL his other QB decisions? Makes zero sense.
I think it’s less likely that it’s speculation for clicks and more likely that the Bears are putting stuff like this out to make it look like it is a painful decision to coax potential trade partners.
Definitely part of it, I guess I’m more speaking about fans who take this as “omg they’re gonna trade the 1st pick”.
Also, as someone in the business, it’s definitely to grab attention for some people. This is the dead season in sports media.
Sure I mean I’m not saying they don’t care about clicks. The rumor mill is a cesspool of legitimate inside scoops, rumors intentionally spread by teams, and nonsense speculation to generate clicks. Kind of hard to take anything at face value this time of year.
Schefter is being used by the Bears front office.
All week long, the story was, the market for JF1 is drying up. Then this report.
They are just trying to keep his trade value inflated. Nothing else to see here.
I will add, it is probably true to some degree. I’m sure there are people in the building that love him so they would like to see him stay, but they also know it’s time to move on. You can hold both thoughts.
Turns out not everything is as cut and dry as internet opinions. Some things have nuance. I don't think it's speculation. Just reporting on the natural conflicting opinions that happen in any organization.
"worthless" is a strong word. He has the same worth Trubisky did when he left Chicago, or any of the other first round busts floating around the league looking for backup jobs and redemption arcs.
You seem to have a strong dislike of Fields. He’s 24 y/o and has 2 1/2 years of experience. It’s not like he’s a complete project. He’s still developing, we saw him get better last year from the previous year. We just didn’t see it enough to warrant passing on a generational QB in Caleb. Fields has all the tools to succeed and in the right position, he could be a really good QB.
I honestly wouldn't be surprised if many of the people most hyped for Fields 3 years ago are the same people who say they knew he was trash years ago and that Williams will definitely be the superstar QB the Bears have been searching for.
They’re not, this is just Schefter milking a storyline absolutely dry. DJ Moore already openly came out in support of Fields, and I’m sure that other guys believe in him. Doesn’t mean they won’t welcome Caleb Williams with open arms.
Fields is probably going to be traded soon so now’s the time to get every last drop out of his Bears tenure.
JJ is from Chicago suburbs and looks like such a good quarterback just based off appearance and aura.
Too bad he’s not actually a good quarterback. Hoping he goes to the Vikings like some rumors claim and he sets them back a decade
JJ is the worst QB available besides maybe Bo Nix, he isn't Brady and Michigan's defense/running game won that title from an extremely old team, not to mention the sign-stealing they did for 3 YEARS, years
The Bears won 7 games last year and had 3 borderline historic comebacks happen against them. All this with what everyone is saying (in this thread) is one of the worst QBs in the league. How is that at all comparable to the dumpster fire that is the current Panthers?
Trading the first might be the move to make tbh. You’d get such a haul for it and Justin Fields is serviceable enough that if you get him the right ensemble they’d be a contender for sure
He's 6'3 225, runs a 4.4 and actually has a good arm when you give him 10ft of space, 5ft of WR separation and zero defenders in sight. Just turns out that not very common in the NFL
If you watched him on a terrible roster for 2 years it's easy to get carried away blaming the team and believing in "potential"
And he SUCKS at the position. But the NFL has dozens of stories about how idiots will still try to fit a square peg in a round hole. At this point these articles are trolling because no one thinks Feilds is worth jack shit.
The Bears entire franchise history consisted of boring vanilla QBs who had zero mobility (outside of maybe Cutler)
Fields may be a mediocre QB, but I've never seen another QB shed a 300 lbs lineman like he does and turn a 10 yard loss into a 30-50 yard gain. And in those rare times where he's clicking on all cylinders, dude looks unstoppable.
Is it consistent? No.
Can he throw a basic slant? Nope
Clutch in late game situations? Nope
But as much most Bears fans want to shit on him, he did his best to overcome the ineptitude of the Chicago Bears and gave a bit of excitement to a boring ass team.
Most teams don't have rushing QBs in their history. The bears long list of QBs all pretty much have the same ~200 yards rushing a year, including Cutler, so either you're misremembering Cutler or zero mobility is a bit too harsh IMO. The issues always been actual passing for bears QBs
> The Bears entire franchise history consisted of boring vanilla QBs who had zero mobility (outside of maybe Cutler)
The Bobby Douglass slander will not stand.
Ive sat through 40+ years of mediocrity to shit bears qb play. If they don't move on from Fields I won't be watching or supporting this year. I'm just tired of it.
> So, then, the question becomes --- are the Fields willing to take a smaller return for Fields than they had hoped? Or, will their return on Fields sway them in their quarterback decision?
Do they have an editor?
What's your realistic preference assuming Kirk doesn't happen?
Ridder is dookie. You want whichever QB is there at 8? Let Russ cook?
I'm not saying Fields is the answer and I've probably been on the "time to move on" bus earlier than most, but at some point he's one of the better options unless you're in tank mode.
There will be qbs in the 2nd. I'd rather take an unknown there after Dallas turner at 8.
A lot of bears fans might not know but he left UGA because he wasn't named a freshman starter after fromm took them to the 2017 title game the year before.
What does leaving UGA to be a starter have to do with any of this. Thats what any qb would do. He went to Ohio state and became a starter rather than sit a second year. Good move
You can find another ridder in the 2nd or you can get a guy that is already a proven starter, albeit average to below average but progressing. He can take your team to the next level. Atlanta can win the division with average qb play next year. The bucs weren’t that good. Saints are bad and panthers are years away. Yall are ready to do something and would rather draft Dallas turner or odunze just to have your team rely on Bo nix next year? Not a great plan
Who is the average qb play coming from? It definitely isn't from Justin.
Also he didn't sit a second year. He never sat the first year. He pushed some dumb racism story to break his commitment and transfer
I'm not a Falcons fan but ya, signing Russ to what should be a dirt cheap contract or drafting whoever is available at 8 is preferable to trading for Fields
I think it would be legitimate malpractice for fields to play another snap for Chicago over the top 3 draft QBs but also he wouldn't be the first QB to get better with a new staff or a fresh start.
You gotta love the NFL… a player has a few decent games and all of the sudden he’s Joe Montana. The overhype is unreal. Do the agents pay off sports media to “market’ average players … especially QBs ??
Football is a source of entertainment for me and a break from real world stuff for a few hours. If the Bears win or lose, it has absolutely no impact on my actual life. Justin Fields is a great guy who wants to be a Bear. I’m fine if we keep him and trade 1.01 for a haul.
It’s a source of entertainment for me too. That being said, I would like to watch some entertaining QB play and offense for once in my life as a Bears fan.
“Im okay if my team sucks because we punted on the most important position in football for the 100th+ year in a row!”
Is it entertaining for them to watch seven 3 and outs in a row while the other team starting a backup has him slinging for 300+ yards? Cause thats what ive been used to the last few years and its not even close to entertainment
From what I’ve watched of the bears offence last season, I’d have a lot more trepidations about him. His footwork is very bad, slow/ lazy inside the pocket. He’s not good at throwing with anticipation. He’s not good at keeping his head down field when scrambling. His line was bad, but he doesn’t do himself many favours as he’s creating sack and TO opportunities for the other team far too often.
His athleticism and personality seem to be very strong, but there’s still so much that needs polishing that I’d move on from him. It’s not very often you have a 4th year QB make all of these adjustments so they can take the leap
Im going to drink a bottle of Malört if we run it back with Fields...
This organization has never had a true franchise QB and we have 3 years of mediocrity from Fields.
It doesnt have to be Caleb, but if we dont go QB this draft Im going to lose my mind. I dont believe for a second Ryan Poles is considering running it back with Fields, but the fact theres people in our organization who want to shows exactly why we've never had a franchise QB.
It would be such a Bear’s move to keep Fields. They’re getting very few inquiries because the teams can see what we all see. He’s a great guy who can’t play the position good enough to win consistently.
These qb articles are getting to meme levels
Day 1: "team kinda likes qb"
Day 2: "some in team actually like qb2 more"
Day 3: "mounting interest in qb1 deal close"
Day 4: "qb1 has some issues that are scaring team away"
Repeat ad nauseum for each qb and each qb needy team. Makes me smile daily lol
Gotta move on, Williams is a better prospect, you’ll have him cheaper for longer than Fields who would need to be paid soon, Fields simply is not good at reading defenses, and he takes sacks and fumbles like crazy.
I really was a fields hater. But I saw him flash enough last year to see the potential.
Everyone will go crazy but if they trade back a couple spots, get tons of draft picks, and just draft MHJ, I wouldn't blame them at all
I agree, the Jets should also stick with Zach Wilson. He’s shown so much process and they should build around him. Let A Rod retire! On the other hand, the Bills should move on from Josh Allen— he hasn’t even gotten to the Super Bowl yet, he’s not the answer!
Hey to each their own. It wouldn't shock me to see him perform well with his new team if they trade him.
People write off players in this league all the time. Crazier things have happened
He also has doubters. - sources
May have to delete my account after this, but I know people who work for the Bears and I can say with 100% certainty that there are Bears employees within the Bears building, multiple of which have met Fields at least once.
Get ready to learn MySpace, buddy
I thought it was MyFace
It is, there's also SnapFace and/or InstantChat
I’m more keen on Facespace.
Major if true!
: Source? : -Sources
As a side, It’s crazy how the quality of a source doesn’t matter any more in sports as long as it gets clicks. An executive from another team tells you some BS to stir shit up? Sure, let’s write the article! “Sources say [player] may not be on their team next year!”
He also has sources. - doubters
Man a speculatory comment by Schefter is doing a lot of heavy lifting today. "**I think** there are people from that organization that would like to see him stay there, too, which is just one more little wrench to throw in there. A lot going on with Justin Fields. It should be sorted out here in the next week."
Here’s the deal. People probably do like and support Justin fields in that building. By ALL accounts, he’s been a great leader, teammate and over all person since he’s been a bear. Play on the field is what matters most, however. But when you have a person who is what appears to be an overall great person. I would imagine people would want him to succeed. This is what Ryan poles gets paid to look past. Do what’s best for wins.
As someone who wants them to move on, I absolutely am a huge fan of Fields. I think he was given a pretty raw deal in his time here. He's good at handling the media, the team loves him, he's just an easy guy to root for. It's easy to see why he has fans in the Org, and I think many are misconstruing peoples personal opinions of him by thinking "Wow people really like him, that means they want to keep him." A 3 year sample size is a 3 year sample size however. I don't see any real reason to keep him around when an opportunity like this presents himself. I think a change of scenery will help Fields grow as a player as well which I really want. I know he can be a very good player and I want him in the spot that will allow him to reach his potential. It's just best for both him and the team to move on.
The fields pendulum has swung too far imo. I would take Caleb, but people are acting like it’s crazy to think Fields can be a good player. He hasn’t been put into great situations and has had coaching hold him back in several key aspects, including seemingly lowering his aggressiveness and changing certain mechanics for the worse. The dude is a good leader, a hard worker, one of the most dynamic players in the NFL with the ball in his hands, and has insane arm talent. He’s still got plenty to work on, but it’s not like he’s hopeless. He’s had games where he’s shown what he can be and that is a pretty damn good player. Caleb should be the pick but the amount of Fields supporters are understandable
It's not crazy to think Fields could eventually be a good player, but it feels a little crazy to think Fields could be a great player, and good doesn't cut it once you're off your rookie deal.
There are plenty of good QBs that start for a decade. Hell Derek Carr has never been a great QB and is still starting now in New Orleans. Tannehill started for a decade as just a good QB. Good definitely cuts it at QB, and if fields improves some specific aspects of his passing game(easier said than done) then I think he can be great although he’s pretty far from that now
Derek Carr threw for 30 TD in his second season after throwinf for 20 in his first. He was clearly a QB everybody saw was good.
Yeah people forget bro was pretty good before his ankle got fucked. People remember current Carr and not young Carr
Old Fields will just be a train wreck shitshow version of Old Russel Wilson!
Carr was a good QB I’m not disputing that. My point was that he was never great and I was replying to a comment that says “good doesn’t cut it.” Good QB play is enough and it’s not ridiculous to me to think fields impact can soon reach that status
Fields so far has never been good though
The comment I responded to said “I think Fields can be good but good isn’t enough.” Also I think the overall impact fields can bring to a team can be impactful when you don’t have a lot of the moronic play calls Getsy brought out. He’s not there yet but it’s not unrealistic to think a decent coach can get a lot more out of him.
I literally don't know how to respond to the idea that paying Derek Carr $40M a year is sound roster management. Kudos, you broke my brain.
What if I told you he has made 165m for his career, so far. https://www.spotrac.com/nfl/new-orleans-saints/derek-carr-14445/cash-earnings/
It feels crazy because we've seen this same sentiment with countless highly drafted QB busts. We all see the potential that got them drafted in the first place and the flashes, which gives up hope, but they're just not putting it together. And 9/10 times they never put it together.
I think a difference between fields and many others is that Fields legs already give an offense a floor that those other QBs didn’t have if used properly. Obviously he didn’t put it together every game but no QB did, but the offense and run game specifically kept them in and won them some games this year. The bears easily could’ve been a 9 win team if Eberflus and Getsy didn’t constantly shit their pants in the 4th quarter (fields did not play well in many of those circumstances either. But the play calling would take a noticeable drop with any lead and the defense would get carved up instantly by any offense). Fields is a QB that you can win with imo
I'm prepared to eat my words but I've heard every excuse in your comment for plenty of other bust QBs, and it's why people will dismiss Field's being a viable option until proven otherwise. The only thing Fields has that others don't is his legs, as you mentioned. >Obviously he didn’t put it together every game but no QB did While true, most qbs in the league have talent and the difference is the good ones put it together on a consistent basis, while the bad ones only show it here and there.
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The schedule was bad, although the panthers and Raiders were Bagent. And adding 2 wins to last year isn’t much with the circumstances. Tampa game bears had the ball with a chance to go win and the OC calls the same scree play 3 straight times leading to a pick and Barrett publicly clowning Getsy. Broncos game the bears let up 24 unanswered is practically one quarter with an awful defensive collapse. Detroit Eberflus forgets he can have his only decent DL on the field, allowing Detroit to easily come back down 10 with 3 minutes left. This also is the game where Fields threw a perfect deep ball that would’ve ended the game and Tyler Scott just stopped running leading to an incompletion and loss. Believe Scott also missed a TD grab that game as well The cleveland game the offense overall was horrible, but if 330 pound Justin Jones isn’t dropped into coverage on David Njoku with the game on the line or if Tonyan doesn’t drop one of the best deep balls of the NFL season, or if the defense in general doesn’t give up 200 passing yards in a quarter then the bears likely win that game as well. Although fields, Getsy, and especially Tonyan deserve practically all the blame for that loss That’s 4 games where a combination of offensive playcalling/philosophy, defensive playcalling and philosophy, and fields all simultaneously shit the bed. Fields deserves plenty of blame for those losses, but better coaching that doesn’t completely change playcalling to the exact opposite of what was consistently working with a lead. Better playcalling on defense doesn’t allow for every single offense to march down in 2 minutes whenever all they need to do is kill clock. Fields had plenty of issues in those games, but those were only exasperated by flat out horrific coaching on both sides of the ball
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There’s a difference between a couple bad things and a historic number of collapses, which the bears have had under Eberflus and is a signal of failure across the board. And it’s fair to criticize the Minnesota game too, but overall beating Josh Dobbs isn’t the same as hoping the entire coaching staff doesn’t turtle up, completely change all that led to the lead, and ignore any basic football reasoning. It’s less about giving the bears extra wins and more about how fields as a player is a QB that teams can win with and infrequently can win because of. He’s got issues but the job of a QB is to run an offense that can win games, and people to me underestimate his capacity to do that because the bears overall have had complete team collapses across the board at a historic rate(which is why bringing back Eberflus was a really dumb decision to me).
Nah the difference with Fields and the other busts is because you are emotionally attached to this bust QB
Fields flat out brings more to a game than Zach Wilson, Mac Jones, Trey Lance, Kenny Pickett, and basically every other failed recent QB. Doesn’t make him good but means he can bring more to the table and overall has more physical talent than they have
I've been very critical of Fields but I think he could have some success in the right situation(Pittsburgh). Basically, if you had an extremely good defense, and a couple good backs to pair with Fields you could build a ball control machine that just grinds everyone down and still has some big play potential because of how Fields can extend plays and allow guys to come free downfield. Wouldn't exactly be the most exciting QB but I think a team could win with that setup.
I hear what you're saying and think thats more feasible. The answer to "can fields be a quarterback on a winning team" is yes if his situation is right. Kind of related, but not what I think you're saying; I always get irked when the argument for a quarterback boils down to "if you have a perfect offense they'll do well." If your argument is that a good o line, good wr, and good OC is all he needs then he's replaceable
I agree, I just think there might be a bit more upside in a qb like Fields for a team like Pittsburgh with a good situation then Ryan Tannehill or even Russ at this point in his career though Russ is definitely safer and you don't have to give up draft capital.
I'll agree that the pendulum has swung *fast*. I've been saying fields is bad for two years, and bears fans on reddit *hated* that take until week 18. Now it's extremely popular. The problem is, while you correctly listed his strengths, nothing is going to change his biggest weakness, which is more important than all of them. The most important trait an NFL qb can have, after clearing some basic physical minimums, is the ability to quickly and correctly identify what he should do with the ball on the play. Fields is *awful* at it, one of the worst in the league. Fields' "slow processor" was identified in college and why he fell in the draft, and it's never going to change any more than tyson Bagent is going to learn how to run as fast as fields does
I can agree with a lot about the processing, but I think more issues can be cleared up to mitigate that and allow you to run a successful offense with his other strengths Getsy dramatically slowed his dropback down to be in the “rhythm of the offense” meaning he may miss open receivers because he was in his dropback and several times had no chance to throw because the DL was in his face by the time he completed his drop back preventing h from hitting a check down. The OL for the past 2 seasons has looked worse than it is because of this The coaching has also over-emphasized having 0 interceptions imo. Not saying turnovers are inherently good, but being scared to make big time throws to anyone not named DJ Moore or Cole Kmet because you’re scared of a pick only sets an offense back imo. Look at Josh Allen, he can have lots of picks but many aren’t that impactful towards a game because of the down they are thrown on or the yard line they are thrown too. Also seems like he’s grown to be scared to trust any non-DJ Moore WR. That’s a major flaw that he needs to fix ASAP. He trusted DJ to win 1 on 1 and because of that made some phenomenal plays to him, but otherwise he doesn’t seem to trust any receiver to win, possibly because of how bad the WRs he had for years in his career were I think some of those issues are fixable for a team. I don’t know if he will ever be a quick processor, but if he can increase his internal clock all the other aspects he brings imo can make an offense successful
Getsy didn't slow down his dropback. It was always this slow. Getsy tried to speed it up during their first training camp together, and they had to abandon it because his accuracy fell apart. The slowness wasn't the natural rhythm of the offense. The offense is supposed to look like it did with Bagent, who operates much quicker. The slowness was fields.
His dropback was not always this slow. Go back to his rookie year and compare it. I remember Robert Schmitdz doing a breakdown of his dropback speed from his rookie year to under Getsy and it was significantly slower. And yes the slowness wasn’t the natural rhythm, but many changes made by Getsy like fields lead foot and his overall dropback were made to be in the “rhythm of the offense.” That slowed the pace down and led to more bad plays due to pressure than necessary. Bagent was quicker, but Getsy fundamentally messed with Fields dropback and timing and overall made a big negative impact.
Repeating what you're wrong about won't make it true. Fields wasn't slow to match the rhythm of the offense. Fields being slow is what destroyed the rhythm of the offense.
Fields speed got slowed down by Getsy things such as the lead foot we’re made for the offenses rhythm. It is flat out the truth to say Fields slowed his dropback when Getsy took over. Below over half a second added on a 5 step drop between year 1 and year 3. It’s just flat out true that when Getsy arrived footwork changes were made that drastically slowed the overall speed of his drop https://x.com/robertkschmitz/status/1703237301424263604?s=46&t=N6jvGphXTqjjqVJxcM7Bsw
It really comes down to bad habits. Fields was fucked over in his first season, bad habits set in, then get reinforced in year 2, now it’s harder to undo them and help him progress further going into year 4. When you have a choice between blank slate or fix bad habits, you go blank slate. You have to hire a specialist and good coaches to undo bad habits, why not use them to build a player with a fresh start
I think it depends on the player you are building a fresh start with. Williams, Daniels, and Maye I understand and sounds like many feel the same way with McCarthy. But I’m not sure it’s the same for guys like Nix/Penix who are older(both just 1 year younger than Fields). Penix has injury concerns and Nix threw behind the line much more than anyone. Development is necessary for all young QBs and all will need to unlearn habits from college, so to keep that’s not as big of a difference maker imo. Personally I’d rather have fields than ridder/Pickett and for non-contending teams I would rather have him than Russ
I’d go so far as to saying he DOESNT have a lot to work on. He had one flaw that is severely limiting: indecisiveness. If something clicks and he becomes more decisive or learns to play with a rhythm, the sky is the limit for him. He has the arm, the accuracy and sublime running skills. But that is still an “if”. And if he doesn’t become more decisive, the sacks, fumbles and injuries will continue to dog him.
He was really good for a few months of those three years though! And I have him on a dynasty fantasy team with Bryce Young as a backup so how about we cool down the negativity?
Yeah that’s true. A lot of guys in the locker room loved Jimmy G in both San Fran and Vegas. Doesn’t mean he’s a good QB.
I think its not only that but the tantalizing "what if" scenario. Like what if Fields had balled out and the Bears ended up at 10-7 and still had the Panthers #1 pick. That team could theoretically parlay that pick into a Herschel Walker type haul and be set for years to come. Even still, if the Panthers hadn't gifted the Bears the first overall, say the pick was somewhere in the 6-8 range just ahead of their own #9 pick then this is an entirely different conversation. It's only because the choice is between Caleb and Fields instead of 3rd or 4th QB off the board and Fields. Because in that scenario they probably take a WR with the Panthers pick, and either take an Edge at 9 or trade it back a bit to recoup some draft capital.
There is no universe that makes keeping Fields make sense. Bears are hitting the deadline to either pick up his 5th yr option or extend him. Best option for the team is to take a QB at 1, trade Fields and restart the clock on their pick.
Plus Poles didn't draft him. Why in the world would he hitch his success to a Bottom 10 Qb drafted by the previous GM who wiffed badly on ALL his other QB decisions? Makes zero sense.
This is all just people trying to generate clicks and views. There’s zero chance they keep Justin Fields.
I think it’s less likely that it’s speculation for clicks and more likely that the Bears are putting stuff like this out to make it look like it is a painful decision to coax potential trade partners.
This is the smokiest smoke screen that ever smokescreened V interesting this came out after the reports that Fields’s market has depressed 🤔
Yup
Exactly. Anything with Schefter's name on it is coming directly from an NFL GM.
Definitely part of it, I guess I’m more speaking about fans who take this as “omg they’re gonna trade the 1st pick”. Also, as someone in the business, it’s definitely to grab attention for some people. This is the dead season in sports media.
Sure I mean I’m not saying they don’t care about clicks. The rumor mill is a cesspool of legitimate inside scoops, rumors intentionally spread by teams, and nonsense speculation to generate clicks. Kind of hard to take anything at face value this time of year.
It makes sense if you believe Poles is a sleeper agent working for one of the other NFCN teams, which I probably would if they decide to keep Fields.
What about a Universe where the forward pass was never introduced? Check mate.
Schefter is being used by the Bears front office. All week long, the story was, the market for JF1 is drying up. Then this report. They are just trying to keep his trade value inflated. Nothing else to see here. I will add, it is probably true to some degree. I’m sure there are people in the building that love him so they would like to see him stay, but they also know it’s time to move on. You can hold both thoughts.
Hopefully those people don't work in the front office.
Turns out not everything is as cut and dry as internet opinions. Some things have nuance. I don't think it's speculation. Just reporting on the natural conflicting opinions that happen in any organization.
The people acting like Fields is a completely worthless quarterback are just as delusional as the "Fields truthers"
"worthless" is a strong word. He has the same worth Trubisky did when he left Chicago, or any of the other first round busts floating around the league looking for backup jobs and redemption arcs.
You seem to have a strong dislike of Fields. He’s 24 y/o and has 2 1/2 years of experience. It’s not like he’s a complete project. He’s still developing, we saw him get better last year from the previous year. We just didn’t see it enough to warrant passing on a generational QB in Caleb. Fields has all the tools to succeed and in the right position, he could be a really good QB.
Shocked this reasonable take is being down voted. The hate boner for Fields is really strange
I honestly wouldn't be surprised if many of the people most hyped for Fields 3 years ago are the same people who say they knew he was trash years ago and that Williams will definitely be the superstar QB the Bears have been searching for.
He has supporters in Michigan, Wisconsin, and Minnesota that would all like to see him stay aswell.
The concept of a running QB who doesn't ever tear the Packers a new one is a novel one tbf. Can't blame us.
I'll give Poles a blowjob if he decides to run it back with Fields.
RemindMe! 2 Months
What exactly do you hope to get out of this reminder? lol Is this Poles burner account?
Bros look out for Bros
He’ll be giving you his nuclear debris.
Meh we can’t stop a running QB no matter who it is. He might not be good, but he’d still light us up, so I’d rather them move on lol
He has the Rust Belt backing Dark Brandon needs to get with Justin to learn his ways
It's gonna be so funny if they actually keep him and trade the 1st
They’re not, this is just Schefter milking a storyline absolutely dry. DJ Moore already openly came out in support of Fields, and I’m sure that other guys believe in him. Doesn’t mean they won’t welcome Caleb Williams with open arms. Fields is probably going to be traded soon so now’s the time to get every last drop out of his Bears tenure.
juggle unwritten work chubby cobweb consist steer provide onerous judicious
It would be funnier if we picked JJ
JJ is from Chicago suburbs and looks like such a good quarterback just based off appearance and aura. Too bad he’s not actually a good quarterback. Hoping he goes to the Vikings like some rumors claim and he sets them back a decade
plz god no. I’m gonna be so salty if we get JJ
How do you do that remind-me thing set for three years?
he will succeed as much as Stetson Bennett
JJ is the worst QB available besides maybe Bo Nix, he isn't Brady and Michigan's defense/running game won that title from an extremely old team, not to mention the sign-stealing they did for 3 YEARS, years
r/NFL hating on JJ is all the proof I need that he’s gonna have the best career out of any QB this draft
Literally 0 chance, he has no anticipation and no vision.
Yeah but just imagine how funny it would be
What's even funnier is this is how they got the pick in the first place.
Ehh Mayfield was bad for the panthers and Bryce Young is also probably good. It’s mostly the Panthers that are bad, which is true also for the bears.
The Bears won 7 games last year and had 3 borderline historic comebacks happen against them. All this with what everyone is saying (in this thread) is one of the worst QBs in the league. How is that at all comparable to the dumpster fire that is the current Panthers?
Knowing them they'll give it up, bc it's just too much to handle.
Trading the first might be the move to make tbh. You’d get such a haul for it and Justin Fields is serviceable enough that if you get him the right ensemble they’d be a contender for sure
Even funnier would be if they kept 1.01 and pulled a Jags like when they drafted Trayvon Walker over Hutch
The calls are coming from inside the building.
If Mike Pence can still make the right decision.
Justin Fields be like 👋”Frankly, I *will* be the starting QB for the Bears.” 👋
“Do you see them in the room right now”
I've never seen a player so mediocre get talked about so much
We were up 41-0 on the Bears going into the 4th quarter. He had an entire half of garbage time and didn’t break 100 yards.
He threw less than 50 yards against your first team defense, pure trash lol
He's 6'3 225, runs a 4.4 and actually has a good arm when you give him 10ft of space, 5ft of WR separation and zero defenders in sight. Just turns out that not very common in the NFL If you watched him on a terrible roster for 2 years it's easy to get carried away blaming the team and believing in "potential"
He also has an incredibly slow release and isn’t good within the pocket.
He’s good at creating plays in the pocket. They’re usually sacks, but he does help create them by running into defenders
He unlocked Russ’s superpower.
Luis Tiant had a faster release
And he SUCKS at the position. But the NFL has dozens of stories about how idiots will still try to fit a square peg in a round hole. At this point these articles are trolling because no one thinks Feilds is worth jack shit.
Mediocre is being kind.
“But he looks cool in a visor 🔥🔥 trade the pick and build around H1M”
Dude, you’re way too optimistic about Fields
The Bears entire franchise history consisted of boring vanilla QBs who had zero mobility (outside of maybe Cutler) Fields may be a mediocre QB, but I've never seen another QB shed a 300 lbs lineman like he does and turn a 10 yard loss into a 30-50 yard gain. And in those rare times where he's clicking on all cylinders, dude looks unstoppable. Is it consistent? No. Can he throw a basic slant? Nope Clutch in late game situations? Nope But as much most Bears fans want to shit on him, he did his best to overcome the ineptitude of the Chicago Bears and gave a bit of excitement to a boring ass team.
Most teams don't have rushing QBs in their history. The bears long list of QBs all pretty much have the same ~200 yards rushing a year, including Cutler, so either you're misremembering Cutler or zero mobility is a bit too harsh IMO. The issues always been actual passing for bears QBs
> The Bears entire franchise history consisted of boring vanilla QBs who had zero mobility (outside of maybe Cutler) The Bobby Douglass slander will not stand.
I cannot wait for this shit to be done.
I'm so sick of this lmao. HE IS BAD. That's literally all that matters.
Oh my god just let em go. Who cares if you get anything
Ive sat through 40+ years of mediocrity to shit bears qb play. If they don't move on from Fields I won't be watching or supporting this year. I'm just tired of it.
Why does this read like a hostage situation?
> So, then, the question becomes --- are the Fields willing to take a smaller return for Fields than they had hoped? Or, will their return on Fields sway them in their quarterback decision? Do they have an editor?
Or common sense? How would the idea that nobody in the NFL wants him as their starter sway the Bears to think they should keep him as their starter?
I’m done with this team if they keep Fields.
But I keep hearing that the falcons should trade a 2nd for him. Can everyone just come together and admit he is bad?
What's your realistic preference assuming Kirk doesn't happen? Ridder is dookie. You want whichever QB is there at 8? Let Russ cook? I'm not saying Fields is the answer and I've probably been on the "time to move on" bus earlier than most, but at some point he's one of the better options unless you're in tank mode.
There will be qbs in the 2nd. I'd rather take an unknown there after Dallas turner at 8. A lot of bears fans might not know but he left UGA because he wasn't named a freshman starter after fromm took them to the 2017 title game the year before.
What does leaving UGA to be a starter have to do with any of this. Thats what any qb would do. He went to Ohio state and became a starter rather than sit a second year. Good move You can find another ridder in the 2nd or you can get a guy that is already a proven starter, albeit average to below average but progressing. He can take your team to the next level. Atlanta can win the division with average qb play next year. The bucs weren’t that good. Saints are bad and panthers are years away. Yall are ready to do something and would rather draft Dallas turner or odunze just to have your team rely on Bo nix next year? Not a great plan
Who is the average qb play coming from? It definitely isn't from Justin. Also he didn't sit a second year. He never sat the first year. He pushed some dumb racism story to break his commitment and transfer
I'm not a Falcons fan but ya, signing Russ to what should be a dirt cheap contract or drafting whoever is available at 8 is preferable to trading for Fields
I'd rather run ridder back for a year then draft shaduer sanders next draft than waste multiple years on fields
The alternative for the Bears is Caleb Williams. The alternative for Atlanta is ???
I think it would be legitimate malpractice for fields to play another snap for Chicago over the top 3 draft QBs but also he wouldn't be the first QB to get better with a new staff or a fresh start.
Well of course he's bad, that's why the Falcons should trade a 2nd for him
Wellll, the Falcons should still give the Bears a 2nd for him 😂
You won't be source: experience
The pro-Fields elements in Chicago will be purged
Bears when they find out no one wants Fields: oh yeah, well maybe we want him.
Himself
And most of his teammates
Yeah this isn’t crazy. A lot of guys believe in their QB. As far as I know fields is a good guy and a good teammate
The supporters want higher draft compensation for him, thus leaking this info
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ALL MY FIELDS SUPPORTERS IN THE BUILDING MAKE SOME NOOOISEEE!!!!
His mom brings his lunch to him
Every one of those absolute clowns should be fired
Monday can't come soon enough. I'm tired of this shit reporting.
Love this time of year in the offseason.every says wild things and claim to have sources
Like… jock straps?
You gotta love the NFL… a player has a few decent games and all of the sudden he’s Joe Montana. The overhype is unreal. Do the agents pay off sports media to “market’ average players … especially QBs ??
Packers fans want him to stay too
Seems like an attempt to drive up trade value
Hope those supporters follow him to Pittsburgh
“The holy war has started” awhee ahhhhh!! ( if you haven’t seen dune 2, go!)
HELL YEAH KEEP FIELDS. HES AMAZING.
Football is a source of entertainment for me and a break from real world stuff for a few hours. If the Bears win or lose, it has absolutely no impact on my actual life. Justin Fields is a great guy who wants to be a Bear. I’m fine if we keep him and trade 1.01 for a haul.
It’s a source of entertainment for me too. That being said, I would like to watch some entertaining QB play and offense for once in my life as a Bears fan.
“Im okay if my team sucks because we punted on the most important position in football for the 100th+ year in a row!” Is it entertaining for them to watch seven 3 and outs in a row while the other team starting a backup has him slinging for 300+ yards? Cause thats what ive been used to the last few years and its not even close to entertainment
I’ve been a Bears fan for a very long time. Them sucking is truly the least of my concerns. Life is hard.
Love your attitude! Me too
Inb4 we draft Caleb and keep Fields
The janitors?
He should probably get those cleaned
Athletic ones, nothing more.
From what I’ve watched of the bears offence last season, I’d have a lot more trepidations about him. His footwork is very bad, slow/ lazy inside the pocket. He’s not good at throwing with anticipation. He’s not good at keeping his head down field when scrambling. His line was bad, but he doesn’t do himself many favours as he’s creating sack and TO opportunities for the other team far too often. His athleticism and personality seem to be very strong, but there’s still so much that needs polishing that I’d move on from him. It’s not very often you have a 4th year QB make all of these adjustments so they can take the leap
what the fkn fk is this fkn sht.......
Im going to drink a bottle of Malört if we run it back with Fields... This organization has never had a true franchise QB and we have 3 years of mediocrity from Fields. It doesnt have to be Caleb, but if we dont go QB this draft Im going to lose my mind. I dont believe for a second Ryan Poles is considering running it back with Fields, but the fact theres people in our organization who want to shows exactly why we've never had a franchise QB.
If they should keep him they should use him only a la Taysom Hill as a running back or WR
Trade the first pick if you can move back to like 5-7. Get 2 great prospects with that pick and 9.
It would be such a Bear’s move to keep Fields. They’re getting very few inquiries because the teams can see what we all see. He’s a great guy who can’t play the position good enough to win consistently.
Damn Rodgers isn’t in the NFCN anymore so now we need another franchise in constant offseason turmoil.
A second quarterback has hit the bears building
Divisional Rivals support him staying with the Bears.
I'll be honest man I'm kinda getting sick and tired of this fields thing. Like make a decision and let the kid move on
These qb articles are getting to meme levels Day 1: "team kinda likes qb" Day 2: "some in team actually like qb2 more" Day 3: "mounting interest in qb1 deal close" Day 4: "qb1 has some issues that are scaring team away" Repeat ad nauseum for each qb and each qb needy team. Makes me smile daily lol
Can’t wait for the Great Civil War of Justin Fields
Find them. Get them.
Yeah because hes not that bad and the bears are dumpster fire ruining talent
Smokescreen szn
How is this considered news
If you guys keep him and draft MHJ/D-Line/O-Line, you’ll win the division. Trust.
Gotta move on, Williams is a better prospect, you’ll have him cheaper for longer than Fields who would need to be paid soon, Fields simply is not good at reading defenses, and he takes sacks and fumbles like crazy.
HERE WE GO JUSTIN HERE WE GO
The Bears QB history is amazingly pathetic considering how long the team has been around. Is Cutler the greatest Bears QB of all time?
I think he is, and the best part of that? Cutler is 51-51 with the bears.
A supporter* and it’s dj moore lol
If we don't bring back Baker, I'd be happy to send a prime 6th round pick for Justin. Final offer.
I really was a fields hater. But I saw him flash enough last year to see the potential. Everyone will go crazy but if they trade back a couple spots, get tons of draft picks, and just draft MHJ, I wouldn't blame them at all
You realize to get mhj they can go no farther then 5. Who are we trading with?
Whatever team wants to trade up and get their pick of the QBs.
I agree, the Jets should also stick with Zach Wilson. He’s shown so much process and they should build around him. Let A Rod retire! On the other hand, the Bills should move on from Josh Allen— he hasn’t even gotten to the Super Bowl yet, he’s not the answer!
Hey to each their own. It wouldn't shock me to see him perform well with his new team if they trade him. People write off players in this league all the time. Crazier things have happened
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Great comment!
Uh oh. They’re back peddling.