For the first time since the start of the new league year, Chicago Bears general manager Ryan Poles met with reporters.
The NFL Owners Meetings are taking place in Florida this week, marking the first time that Poles could address the Bears' decision to trade Justin Fields in detail.
Fields was traded the first weekend after the start of the new league year and the belief is that Poles took less, in the offer from the Pittsburgh Steelers, in order to send the team's 2021 first-round pick to a team that he wanted to play for.
While Poles did not confirm that notion on Monday, he did share an emotional story about the decision.
Bears GM Ryan Poles speaking at the league meetings in Orlando this morning. On trading Justin Fields: “Probably one of the harder things I’ve had to do.” Mentioned that Fields’ jersey is up in his son’s room.
— Kevin Fishbain (@kfishbain) March 25, 2024
The Chicago Bears' decision to trade Justin Fields was filled with emotions.
While the signs have been apparent for most of the off-season that the Bears were going to move in the direction of trading Fields in favor of selecting Caleb Williams with the first overall selection in the 2024 NFL Draft, the fact remains that Fields was the unquestioned leader of the team and, arguably, the most popular athlete in the City of Chicago.
The Bears needed to be careful with how they handled the decision to trade Fields and the aftermath of their choice. Poles expanded upon the events of the day that the team made the trade official, including how the news was delivered to Fields.
When the Bears traded Justin Fields, Ryan Poles and Matt Eberflus got together at Eberflus' house and called Fields. Poles: "One of the harder things we had to do but I thought it was necessary for us to head in the right direction." 1/2
— Adam Jahns (@adamjahns) March 25, 2024
There is no question that the Bears went about the process of trading Fields in the right manner. In trading Fields when they did, it allowed the team to divert their entire attention to the vetting and consequent selection of Williams at the draft next month. For Fields, he now is in the position to get started with this new team right away instead of remaining with a team that had already made the decision he was not the quarterback for them.