Steelers Trade Target Justin Fields' Suddenly Softening Market Described As Less "Robust" Than Expected

The Pittsburgh Steelers have a quarterback controversy on their hands. At least they will have one when Omar Khan adds another quarterback to the roster besides Kenny Pickett. Younger fans who only knew Ben Roethlisberger as the quarterback for the Steelers may not be familiar with the greatest Steelers tradition of them all: mishandling quarterbacks. 

The Steelers are interested in retaining Mason Rudolph. Khan reiterated on Thursday during his interaction with the press that re-signing him before the league year begins was a priority. Pittsburgh's general manager was coy about his intentions in free agency. He also refused to comment on the hottest topic in Steelers social media, a potential trade for Justin Fields.

On Friday, Dianna Russini from The Athletic shared that the potential trade market for the Chicago Bears quarterback could be vastly overestimated. Russini appeared on The Athletic Football Show podcast with Robert Mays and assessed how the Bears were approaching the trade market. 

"There's a little bit of sadness to think they are going to move on," Russini described. "Let's see what they can get in terms of a trade for him. You're going to get probably the best quarterback in this class. It's a big business decision with a ton of pressure. They are ready to move on from Justin."

The Bears are positioned to select Caleb Williams as the consensus number-one quarterback in the 2024 NFL Draft. Most draft experts are calling him a generational, can't miss prospect like Peyton Manning, Andrew Luck, and most recently, the Jacksonville Jaguars' Trevor Lawrence. Fields is being treated by some on social media as a failure, despite having rushed for 1,000 yards during the 2022 season and vastly improving as a passer in the latter half of 2023.

Mays asked Russini, based on who would be interested in trading for Fields' services, what the Bears could expect in return. Kyle Yates from Pro Football Network shared part of her opinion on social media. Russini expounded that the difference between the Bears' expected asking price and the reality of what they would get as compensation might be a little more underwhelming than previously thought. 

"When my plane landed in Indy, I was immediately on a mission to keep track of all the teams that are going to be in on Justin Fields," Russini said. "I'm chasing down Pittsburgh, Atlanta. I'm just thinking of every team that could use him. Now I'm leaving in 24 hours. I can tell you, I don't think the market is as robust as a lot of people thought."

Mays quickly agreed with Russini's assessment. Perhaps the only team in NFL history worse at assessing and handling quarterbacks than the Steelers is the Bears. Pittsburgh can at least point to the success of Terry Bradshaw and Roethlisberger, who produced six Super Bowls. The last franchise quarterback in Chicago was Sid Luckman, who retired before the Korean War started. Williams could break the Bears curse, but Chicago has seemingly overplayed their hand with Fields. 

"Chicago has been very transparent," Russini added. "Ryan Poles shared with the media, 'We are not trying to drag this thing. We want to move on.' If that is the avenue they go, they are trying to keep their cards close to the vest to try to build up some sort of leverage. I just don't think there is a team right now that is going to be aggressively chasing after Justin Fields. Do I still think he is going to get traded to a team? Yes. But there is no clear team that makes sense. Justin Fields to the Steelers, it's not the Steelers way of doing things."

Steelers Doing Business Differently Under Omar Khan

Since Khan took over, some of the tried and true assumptions of how the Steelers approach trades, free agency, and the draft have been debunked. The Steelers general manager traded Chase Claypool to the Bears for the pick that turned into Joey Porter Jr. He signed older free agents like Patrick Peterson and Isaac Seumalo. Pittsburgh even fired Matt Canada during the season, marking the first time since before Pearl Harbor they had resorted to such a move. In fairness, Khan is the only member of the front office who didn't get credit for the decision.

Russini is right that the Bears are in a no-win situation, and every other team in the NFL knows it. They have to make a trade. The Bears can't keep Fields and draft Williams. If they elected to keep Fields, teams would be lined up around the block to dump draft capital and impact players at their feet to get a chance at the number one pick.

The Bears can't afford to pass on a highly regarded quarterback prospect, no matter how bright they think Fields' future may or may not be. It puts them in the precarious position of hoping that the Atlanta Falcons, the Denver Broncos, or even the Minnesota Vikings start a bidding war for the current Bears quarterback. If it doesn't happen, they may have to settle. That could open the door for the latest bit of Khan artistry. 

What do you think, Steeler Nation? If Khan can get Fields for peanuts, should he give him a chance to start over with the Steelers and see if they can turn it into peanut butter? Please comment below or on my Twitter/X: @thebubbasq. 

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