It seems that the Chicago Bears have truly regretted taking Mitch Trubisky over Deshaun Watson in 2017. Watson was there for the taking, yet Ryan Pace traded up one spot to ensure he lands the quarterback that reminded him of Drew Brees — Mitch Trubisky. The jury is still out in my opinion on what type of career Trubisky has, but missing out on Watson has proven to be a tragedy.
Do not bring up Patrick Mahomes to me in this conversation. I wanted Watson. Like most, I found that Mahomes had plenty of question marks and should not have been drafted until late in the first round. Clearly, I was wrong, but I guarantee the majority of the analysts and fans were in the same boat as I was on draft day that season.
I doubt that Ryan Pace and the Chicago Bears can right that wrong by trading for Watson despite rumors that he wants out of Houston. What the Bears could do is make a major splash, trade up and take Justin Fields in the 2021 NFL Draft.
We have plenty of time between now and the 2021 NFL Draft. As of right now, it seems that many analysts are starting to put Zach Wilson above Justin Fields in their rankings. Without having direct access to NFL scouts, I have no way of knowing if NFL teams are doing the same with their “big boards”. That said, it will be interesting to see how things shake out as April approaches.
The Chicago Bears might actually have a shot at Justin Fields
With Trevor Lawrence most likely going first overall to the Jaguars, the next team that needs a quarterback is likely the Jets. The Jets own the second-overall pick in the draft and despite reports that new head coach Robert Saleh has spoken highly of Sam Darnold, the team will more than likely take a quarterback in the first round.
The question remains, will it be Zach Wilson or Justin Fields? Wilson is the flashy, hot commodity, but give me Fields over him. If I am the Chicago Bears, I am not trying to trade up for Wilson. Too much risk comes from a quarterback that only threw 11 touchdowns in his sophomore season.
If the Jets take Wilson, the Dolphins pick next and are not likely to take a quarterback after taking Tua Tagovailoa in the 2020 NFL Draft. This means the only way that the third-overall pick is a quarterback is if the Dolphins trade the pick. Do the Dolphins move the third-overall pick and Tagovailoa to the Texans for Deshaun Watson? That is a legit possibility, but if the Dolphins do not target Watson, maybe the Chicago Bears can swoop in and land Justin Fields instead.
Trading up from 20 to the third-overall pick will not come cheap, but Matt Nagy and Ryan Pace must take a swing and hope it sticks if they want to continue to keep their jobs beyond 2021.