Bears News: Latest Vegas Odds on Justin Fields’ Next Team |
The Vegas Odds for where quarterback Justin Fields is going to end up are on the move again. While the Atlanta Falcons are currently the favorites, there has been quite the shift with Chicago currently sitting in third in the odds.
According to BetSided, the Falcons have the highest odds of acquiring Fields with +110. The Pittsburgh Steelers are now in second at +250, the Bears in third at +275, Minnesota Vikings in fourth at +550 and the Las Vegas Raiders at +650. Every other team in the NFL has odds of at least +1400 of having Fields playing for them next year. Atlanta Falcons There has been a lot of talk about the Falcons going after Fields. However, there have been some recent developments that have changed that, primarily Kirk Cousins. It was previously anticipated that Cousins was looking to secure a deal to remain with the Minnesota Vikings. However, this definitely seems to have turned, particularly after the deadline for franchise tags. Now, it appears Cousins is the top choice for Atlanta. The salary cap could be the biggest deterrence for that to happen as they currently have $41,616,657. Giving a contract to Cousins would take a big chunk out of that. A trade for Fields would cost less than signing Cousins, which is reflected in the odds. Pittsburgh Steelers The Steelers have a bit of a mess at quarterback since Kenny Pickett is clearly not the answer, Mason Rudolph is a decent No. 2 quarterback and Mitch Trubisky was released and now playing for the Buffalo Bills, seemingly as their No. 2. Pittsburgh needs a quarterback and could certainly go after a player like Fields. He is a dual-threat quarterback, something they have lacked for a very long time even though running ability is becoming essential for NFL quarterbacks. The salary cap really takes them out of consideration for Cousins, but could also pose a problem for them acquiring Fields. They currently have less than $10 million in cap space, not leaving enough room for them to trade for Fields. Pittsburgh has to clear some cap space regardless, but could definitely look to free up enough space to be able to acquire Fields in some kind of trade. Chicago Bears There is a lot of speculation about Fields, mostly regarding Chicago trading Fields. What if they do not? It is a reasonable possibility. They could trade down, get Marvin Harrison Jr and then an offensive lineman at No. 9 overall. He has shown a lot of potential and is one of the best running quarterbacks in the league, making him dynamic and giving the offense an explosive element. Furthermore, he has never truly gotten a chance to show what he’s capable of as he’s been working with a poor offensive play caller his entire NFL career. This season could finally give him the chance to show what he is capable of, especially pairing elite receiver DJ Moore with Fields’ former college teammate and current friend of Moore’s in Marvin Harrison Jr. Another reason to keep Fields is because Chicago has missed the opening for trading him. There was a time when Fields would have commanded a second or even first-round pick. Now, that stock has severely decreased with quarterbacks like Cousins, Russell Wilson and maybe even Baker Mayfield available on the market when they previously were not anticipated to be, at least in the case of Cousins and Mayfield. Minnesota Vikings Minnesota has gotten themselves in quite the situation. Kirk Cousins needs a contract, and it does not appear he is going to get one. They need to pay receiver Justin Jefferson, who will command an incredibly high salary that could suck up most of their slightly over $41 million left in the salary cap. Financially, while they cannot afford to keep Cousins, they could maybe afford Fields. With them keeping Jefferson, they already have a solid No. 1 receiver to work with Fields. Another benefit for Minnesota in getting Fields through a trade is that such a trade could also include running back Khalil Herbert as a small addition, perhaps to incentivize a little higher draft pick, such as both of their fourth-round picks instead of a fourth and a fifth or their second instead of their fourth, although the market on Fields is dropping so they still may not be able to get a second pick throwing Herbert in the deal. Herbert could be enticing for Minnesota, who currently has a gaping hole at running back. Las Vegas Raiders Las Vegas is in a bit of a rebuild. They appear to be letting running back Josh Jacobs go to free agency. Receiver Davante Adams does not seem incredibly pleased with the franchise. Quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo is not the answer they were looking for and they could save a lot of money cutting him, even more if they cut him after June 1. It is understandable why their odds are low because being in rebuilding, Fields is probably not the quarterback you go after for that and instead seek a rookie in the draft. However, their draft position is not ideal for that at No. 13 overall, which could incentivize getting a quarterback via trade instead. Denver Broncos Despite having low odds for getting Justin Fields, they should still be considered particularly because they are part of the reason Fields’ stock is now decreasing. Denver has released Russell Wilson and granted him permission to speak with teams before the official start of free agency. So, Denver has a quarterback opening. Head coach Sean Payton has never really worked with a rookie quarterback and it seems likely that the team would rather have a veteran quarterback. However, because of Wilson’s contract, Denver is in the worst position out of any NFL team as far as the salary cap is concerned. Despite the historic increase in the salary cap of over $30 million, that is essentially irrelevant to the Broncos since they have a $35.4 million cap hit from Wilson’s contract. Thus, they are in the worst financial ability to make any kind of move for Fields. They will have to restructure contracts and release players just to get under the cap, so those moves should give an indication of whether they are in the running for Fields at all.
