Justin Fields got the long-awaited call while eating a late supper in Italy on March 16.
Weeks earlier, during his departure meeting, the Chicago Bears notified their former first-round quarterback that they intended to move on from him and choose a quarterback with the No. 1 overall choice. After a long wait stretching back to the 2023 offseason, Fields discovered he was a Pittsburgh Steeler in exchange for a conditional sixth-round selection at 10 p.m. in Milan, Italy.
“We were in the same situation last year with the first pick, and it was just a little different this year,” Fields said on Tuesday, addressing for the first time since the trade. “I’m not ignorant to the fact that I can read body language and such. It wasn’t a complete surprise, like, ‘Oh, I was moved.’ I understood what was going to happen beforehand. So I’m simply thrilled that I was traded to where I wanted to be.
He also said that knowing his goal was a “relief.”
Before the deal with Pittsburgh, Bears general manager Ryan Poles said that he intended to “do right” with the team’s 11th overall selection in 2021. After his first OTA workout in Pittsburgh, Fields thanked the Bears’ brass.
“Shoutout to Poles, we communicated with him through my agent, and I told him where I wanted to be and this was a place I wanted to be,” Fields said. “He honored that, and I appreciate him for that and am glad he was able to put me in a spot where I wanted to be.”
Fields also expressed gratitude for his time with the Bears, saying, “There were many ups and downs, but overall, I value every connection that I formed, all of my teammates. They know I have nothing but affection for the city, the fans, and my former colleagues and coaches.
Justin Fields sensed his time in Chicago was over at his departure meeting in January.
While Bears general manager Ryan Poles did not explicitly inform Fields that the team was looking for a new quarterback following three rough seasons with the talented but unreliable Fields leading the offense, Foles did not have to.
Fields could detect it in the Poles’ body language.
Therefore, Fields’ initial reaction when learning that he would be joining the Pittsburgh Steelers while eating dinner in Italy in mid-March was relief, then hope.
Even though the Steelers had recently signed Russell Wilson and named him the starter. Even knowing that Pittsburgh was unlikely to activate Fields’ fifth-year option. Even the future after 2024 seems unknown.
Fields recalls witnessing a Steelers coach Mike Tomlin-themed promotional film while at Ohio State. And then, all of a sudden, Fields was on Tuesday, listening to Tomlin give the Steelers, including himself, a pep talk before the start of organized team activities.
“The culture that ‘Coach T’ has and just the standard that the Steelers have set, this organization has set, I think that was the biggest appeal for me,” Fields said.
The 25-year-old Fields credited Poles for placing him in a position where he wanted to be, even if that meant his name wasn’t at the top of the depth chart.
When asked whether it upset him that he wasn’t traded to a position where he could start immediately, Fields shook his head and stated he wasn’t “worried about who was here, none of that.”
The opportunity to play under Tomlin and be a part of a team recognized for its stability (although this may be changing given the roster upheaval over the last four months) trumped anything else.
“I’m grateful to be here and grateful to be a part of this team,” he said.
After losing in the first round of the playoffs to Buffalo, the squad entirely redesigned their offensive. Kenny Pickett, Mitch Trubisky, and Mason Rudolph, the Steelers’ three starting quarterbacks last season, have all left the team. Former offensive coordinator Matt Canada, as well as top wide receiver Diontae Johnson, are also involved.
The organization feels a sense of urgency as the club approaches the eighth anniversary of its most recent playoff triumph. Pittsburgh recruited former Atlanta Falcons coach Arthur Smith to head the offense and chose two potential pillars, tackle Troy Fautanu and center Zach Frazier.
Fields is eager to learn from Wilson while also pushing him, but he remains certain that his greatest football is yet to come.
“I think I have a lot more room to grow,” he said. “I’m nowhere near my ceiling for sure.”
He will have the opportunity to attempt to do it without the burden—at least initially—of being a franchise savior, as he was in Chicago. It’s instructive that while Wilson had a formal press conference on Tuesday in front of a background adjacent to the practice field, Fields spoke with his locker, as backups do.
He hasn’t been in this capacity in a long time. He is aware of and understands the current situation. Just don’t mistake maturity for complacency.
“I’m competing,” he said. “I believe Russell is aware of this. We compete against each other every day. His presence in my life is beneficial to my recovery. (We’re) pushing each other, so I don’t have the attitude of sitting all year.”
Perhaps he will not. The Steelers haven’t had a quarterback start every game this season since 2018, but Wilson has proved to be rather durable, missing just a few games throughout his 12-year career.
Fields has no control over when he is given a chance. For the time being, there is just the option of restarting. He had many “ups and downs” in Chicago, but he emphasized that he has “nothing but love for the city, for the fans, and my old teammates and coaches.”
Those sentiments are already taking hold in his hometown. Fields claimed he’s had lengthy chats with Uber drivers on trips to the airport and lauded his new colleagues for making him feel welcome.
In Chicago, things did not go as he had planned. A fresh chapter awaits.
“I’m not the same quarterback as I was last year and I’m not even the same quarterback I was yesterday,” stated the QB. “So I’m going to continue to get better every day.”
