In what universe do the Pittsburgh Steelers trade for QB Justin Fields?
Could this be that universe? We already know that some in the building regarded Fields quite highly coming out of the draft. Then again, we can probably say that about most teams. The Chicago Bears used the 11th-overall pick on him, meaning 21 other teams didn’t get much of a swing at him. Gerry Dulac, for instance, said one Steelers coach told him if Fields were on the board the Steelers would have drafted him.
Reports of a weak trade market for the fourth-year quarterback only make the possibility even more plausible. The lower the Steelers manage to pay for Fields, the more likely they are to deal. They are bargaining from a position of strength on multiple fronts.
For one thing, everybody and their mother knows the Bears not only want to trade him, but they need to do it relatively soon. And the Steelers are ostensibly moving forward this offseason with Kenny Pickett and Mason Rudolph. The Bears need to do this deal more than the Steelers do, from that perspective.
There are some hiccups in all this, as you ought to expect. There is the matter of the fifth-year option, for example. Would the Steelers give up draft picks for Fields and then not pick up his option, accepting a one-year rental? Other teams do similar things, and there’s the potential for a compensatory pick on the other side of the rainbow.
Unless they really get Fields for rather cheap, though, acquiring him puts the lie to any notion of a competition. You don’t pay a high price for a quarterback and then say “go try to win the job”. If you’re willing to pay a certain price, you’re willing to commit to starting him for at least one season. That’s how most teams operate, anyway. You don’t want to toss around draft resources lightly, especially for a time like the Steelers.
The Steelers’ 2023 season has been put out of its misery, ending as so many have before in recent years: a disappointing, blowout playoff loss. The only change-up lately is when they miss the playoffs altogether. But with the Buffalo Bills stamping them out in the Wildcard Round, they have another long offseason ahead.
The biggest question hanging over the team is the quarterback question. Is Kenny Pickett the guy? Will he get another season’s reprieve without a serious challenge? How will the team address the depth chart? Do they re-sign Mason Rudolph, one of few significant unrestricted free agents?
The Steelers are swirling with more questions this offseason than usual, frankly, though the major free agent list is less substantial than usual. It’s just a matter of…what happens next? Where do they go from here? How do they find the way forward?
