All indications are the Chicago Bears plan to trade quarterback Justin Fields and select Caleb Williams atop the 2024 NFL Draft. But at least one former Pro Bowl signal-caller believes the team is bending to public pressure when it comes to evaluating Fields’ future, arguing the Bears would be better off building around their current quarterback than starting over with Williams.
“I think the Bears are caught up in the public cry right now,” longtime Philadelphia Eagles star Donovan McNabb told CBS Sports this week. “Don’t get me wrong, I think Caleb Williams — with the right system and the right people around him — could be a generational talent. But we said the same thing for Justin and all these other guys.”
McNabb, who was born and raised in Chicago, has spoken with a number of 2024 quarterback prospects, including other first-round projections in Jayden Daniels and Michael Penix Jr. He’s intrigued by what each of them will offer at the NFL level. But Fields is still young and still improving, he said, and has an opportunity to take an even bigger leap with the Bears’ support.
“I think Justin would be better suited to stay in Chicago, and they would go into the draft and build around him,” McNabb explained. “I think the best thing for them to do is to trade that (No. 1) pick and get more picks and continue to build that defense, get some more offensive linemen and skill positions. … Maybe they drop down to the second or third pick and then get Marvin Harrison Jr. to come in there with D.J. Moore when you have two or three other picks you’d receive, that would help.”
For now, the Bears appear intent on doing otherwise. While general manager Ryan Poles has suggested the No. 1 pick could be had via trade, he’s also all but advertised Fields via trade, saying he’ll “do right by Justin” in a potential move and indicating the Bears would like to part ways with the former first-rounder ahead of the draft. Williams, the consensus top prospect in the 2024 class, has also said publicly he’d welcome a chance to play for Chicago.
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