Chicago Bears: Making the case for keeping Justin Fields on the roster

Poles cannot walk away from the treasure trove of assets he can pick up by trading the #1 pick

One of the reasons Fields has not had success is the lack of weapons and protection he's had. Even the diehard Fields opponents have to admit that. In 2021 the Bears did not have many receiving targets and they did not have a good offensive line.

In 2022, Poles obliterated the roster. He needed to have the salary cap space to make some moves so he signed a bunch of third and fourth-string players to mostly one-year deals. That meant there was not much talent to win games.

Chicago did start 3-4 and some were thinking that this team might not be so bad. However, they were. They ended up losing their last 10 games and finished 3-14.

Poles had a plan, though. He took the almost $100 million in salary cap space and the #1 pick to overhaul the roster. He added offensive lineman Nate Davis, running back D'Onta Foreman, defensive linemen DeMarcus Walker, Andrew Billings, Yannick Ngakoue, and linebackers TJ Edwards and Trmaine Edmunds.

Poles turned the #1 pick into offensive lineman Darnell Wright, cornerback Tyrique Stevenson, this year's Carolina Panthers' first-round pick, and another second-round pick in 2025. Oh, and he also picked up DJ Moore.

Trading the #1 pick will have ramifications for the Bears for quite a few seasons. Having this top pick, with a chance to draft Williams, can bring Poles and the Bears even more. That could almost instantly make the Chicago Bears a contender for at least the division title.

People seem to have forgotten what Poles said in his introductory press conference. He wants to build through the draft first and use free agency to complement.

"We are going to build through the draft. We are going to acquire young, fast and physical football players. We are going to be selective in free agency."

- Ryan Poles

Poles wants to have a core group of players who come up and grow together. That is exactly what he is creating. He did that with trading the #1 pick and had a high number of additional picks.

Trading the #1 pick this year can extend Poles' vision. By acquiring another treasure trove of picks (and likely another key veteran player) assures the Bears that they will have great picks over the next three drafts. How could he walk away from that?

Additionally, acquiring as much talent as possible will help in having Fields play better. He will have better protection up front and better receiving targets. With better talent around him and better coaching, Fields can become a Chicago Bears legend.