Bears’ Poles Talks Justin Fields Trade and Caleb Williams’ Teammates Loving USC QB

Timothy Rapp@@TRappaRTFeatured Columnist IVMarch 25, 2024

Nick Cammett/Diamond Images via Getty Images

Chicago Bears general manager Ryan Poles told reporters on Monday that trading quarterback Justin Fields to the Pittsburgh Steelers wasn’t an easy decision.

“Probably one of the harder things I’ve had to do,” he said. “I always kinda touch on the empathy part. Having that conversation with my own son was hard. [Fields’ jersey is] up in his room. So it kind of puts into perspective how difficult those moves are.”

Patrick Finley @patrickfinley#Bears GM Ryan Poles on trading Justin Fields: pic.twitter.com/eLDT2FvOa5

But the team will be transitioning to a new quarterback, likely one it will select with the No. 1 overall pick in April’s draft, and Poles spoke in very complimentary terms about USC’s Caleb Williams, the presumptive frontrunner to be the first player off the board.

Adam Hoge @AdamHogeCaleb Williams will make his top 30 visit to Halas Hall in the first week of April.

Ryan Poles said as he talked to Williams’ teammates, he learned: “They don’t like him, they love him.” pic.twitter.com/dzCO1ISmHX

Josh Schrock @Schrock_And_AweRyan Poles said Caleb Williams’ 30 visit will be during the first week of April.

Said during dinner with Caleb at his pro day that Williams never touched his phone and was intentional about his conversations with the Bears staff that was there.

“He’s intentional with his leadership,” Poles added of Williams. “Same goes with the staff. I’m having a hard time finding a person that doesn’t like him or even love him and thinks that he can reach the highest limits. The feedback’s been good.”

As for moving on from Fields and transitioning to a rookie quarterback, Poles said a huge part of the decision came down to the benefits of having a quarterback on a rookie contract for another five seasons from a team-building perspective.

“It wasn’t Justin vs. one of these rookies,” he told reporters. “It’s really the timeline and how much runway you have.”

As for that rookie quarterback, they’ll have a fun assortment of weapons to utilize. The Bears already had receiver D.J. Moore and tight end Cole Kmet in house, and bolstered the offense by signing free agent running back D’Andre Swift and trading a fourth-round pick to land star wideout Keenan Allen.

Poles told reporters the latter was “an absolute perfect fit” to pair with a rookie quarterback.

“I don’t think there’s a better receiver in the league that can be better for a young quarterback in terms of understanding the game, timing, space, reading defenses,” he added.

Josh Schrock @Schrock_And_AweMore Ryan Poles on Keenan Allen: “My time in KC, I watched him do some really cool things for a long period of time. To watch the tape, it actually blew me away how high of a level he’s still playing.”

Adam Jahns @adamjahnsBears GM Ryan Poles on an extension for WR Keenan Allen: “I try to be intentional with the order that we do extensions, so we’ll review that and kind of see what our order looks like. But for what he stands for, I would love to have him long term.”

The Bears have had a busy offseason already, and they’ll be one of the most intriguing teams to watch at the NFL draft, with the Nos. 1 and 9 picks in the first round. That will give them the opportunity to add two foundational players to the roster, with the expectation that Williams will be the first one.