Stop me if you’ve heard this before. But another NFL analyst believes quarterback Justin Fields should demand a trade because the Bears are trying to ruin him.
It’s been a popular viewpoint throughout the offseason as Chicago has received plenty of criticism for how they’ve chosen to surround Justin Fields with receivers and the offensive line.
Former NFL cornerback and ESPN personality Domonique Foxworth is the latest analyst to boldly proclaim that Fields demand a trade from the Bears so he actually gets a chance to thrive in the NFL.
“Justin Fields should demand a damn trade,” Foxworth said on The Domonique Foxworth Show. “The Chicago Bears don’t have enough good players. Their cap is messed up. They didn’t draft and sign all that well. Hold out and force a trade.”
Well, that was…an argument. Not a very factual one, but it was something.
Let’s go ahead of break down (debunk) Foxworth’s reasoning.
“The Chicago Bears don’t have enough good players.”
This is easily Foxworth’s strongest argument. The concern surrounding Fields is an unproven receiving corp and questionable offensive line. Darnell Mooney is the only proven option. But unproven doesn’t necessarily mean bad. There’s also an argument to be made that the Bears improved on defense, which also helps a young quarterback. Still, this was to be expected in the first year of Chicago’s rebuild under general manager Ryan Poles. If this was happening in year two of Poles’ reign, then it would be a problem.
“Their cap is messed up.”
Now that’s just not true. The Bears are actually in decent shape with the salary cap for the remainder of the 2022 season. But when you look to 2023, they’re not just projected to have the most cap space, they’re projected to have more than $100 million to work with. Next offseason is when Poles will look to add some top free agents to help surround Fields and bring back some key players currently under contract.
“They didn’t draft and sign all that well.”
Look, you can disagree with the signings Poles went out and made — as they were a lot of low-risk, potential high-reward contracts — but to say he didn’t draft well just doesn’t make sense. First off, we don’t know how this draft class will ultimately pan out.
With that said, the Bears have 10 of their 11 draft selections on their roster (Doug Kramer being the only outlier, and it’s because he landed on injured reserve). Top picks Kyler Gordon and Jaquan Brisker have been flashing since they arrived, fifth-round selection Braxton Jones is the starting left tackle, punter Trenton Gill looks like a seasoned pro and there are a slew of other rookies who have been standing out.
Fields has a chance to silence the doubters, like Foxworth, starting this Sunday against the 49ers.
