JUST IN: Bears former GM reveals a fresh major update on Justin Fields contract and future with bears

Former NFL general manager and current ESPN front office insider Mike Tannenbaum believes quarterback Justin Fields must make a significant leap before Week 18 to prevent the 3-8 Chicago Bears from drafting his eventual replacement this spring.

“Justin Fields is going to have to play out of his mind because if it’s close, the economics are so compelling to take another quarterback to reset the clock,” Tannenbaum told ESPN’s Courtney Cronin in a piece published Monday. “If you could reset the clock on a rookie quarterback alone, Justin Fields would have to be two to three times the player to not take a quarterback because you have to think about all those other players you can add with the savings.”

Tannenbaum was referring to the fact that the Bears must exercise or decline Fields’ fifth-year option for 2025 by next May. That option is worth an estimated $23.3 million, far more than Caleb Williams of the USC Trojans or North Carolina Tar Heels star Drake Maye will cost any team next season.

Through their March trade with the Carolina Panthers, the Bears are on track to have the first overall pick in the 2024 draft.

Fields, on the other hand, has yet to establish himself as a top-tier passer at the highest level. According to ESPN statistics, he entered Monday’s game against the 6-5 Minnesota Vikings ranked 23rd in the NFL among qualified players with a 45.0 adjusted QBR and 26th with a 62.7% completion percentage.

Meanwhile, Cronin was told by an unnamed AFC executive that Williams could be a top-10 quarterback in the league “the day he showed up” to a team’s facility following the draft.

“A lot of the things they’re asking Fields to do, Caleb does better,” said an NFC national scout. “This guy thrives on his ability to improv, create on his own and turn a dead play into a highlight.”