NFL players: they’re just like the rest of us.
If you’re tired of the endless Chicago Bears quarterback debates, those fiery Justin Fields versus Caleb Williams arguments that have remained persistent through the early stages of this offseason, you have esteemed company. In Fields. The soon-to-be 25-year-old quarterback explained his role in this week’s hottest sports social media mystery, using an appearance on the 33rd Team’s “St. Brown Bros Podcast” to clarify why he is no longer following the Bears account on Instagram.
Fields said his motive was hardly as passive-aggressive or nefarious as many assumed.
“Man, bro, I’m glad we’re talking about it,” Fields said to podcast hosts and NFL players Amon-Ra St. Brown and Equanimeous St. Brown. “Why do people take social media so seriously? Like, just because I unfollow this and that … I still mess with the Bears, this and that. I’m just trying to take a little break.”
So why exactly did he recently unfollow the Bears account at a time when his future with the team is being discussed so frequently? Fields explained that he has plans to travel to Amsterdam and Milan for a getaway and simply wanted a timeline cleanse.
“I unfollowed the Bears and the NFL, bro,” he said. “I’m just trying to not have football on my timeline. … It’s something I don’t want to see on my timeline. I’m about to go on vacation. I don’t want to see no football. Every Bears post it’s either, ‘Keep Fields. We want Fields.’ Or ‘Draft Caleb.’ It’s like, bro, man, I’m tired of hearing the talk.”
On that, Fields is hardly alone.
Bears general manager Ryan Poles faces a big decision in the coming weeks on what to do at quarterback, potentially keeping Fields for his fourth season in Chicago or moving in a new direction by drafting a quarterback and possibly trading away his current starting quarterback.
Fields, like so many, is just eager to learn of the final resolution.
“I just want it to be over,” he said. “Just let me know if I’m getting traded. Let me know if I’m staying.”
That answer will come in due time. The NFL scouting combine begins next week, and the chatter on Fields’ future and the Bears’ quarterback decision will only amplify.
The NFL’s new league year, when trades can become official, is now less than three weeks away. The draft is in late April.
If the decisions were Fields’ alone, he said he would stay put at Halas Hall and continue his journey with the Bears.
“I can’t see myself playing in another place,” he said. “But I know how the league is. … If it was up to me, I would want to stay in Chicago. I love the city. The city’s lit. The fans are great and the people (too). But it’s a business. I ain’t got no control over it. So whatever happens happens.”
Fair enough.
Wherever Fields is playing in 2024, he emphatically expressed one predominant goal for his fourth season.
“I’m not going to lie,” he said. “I’ve got to get into the playoffs.”
