I agree teams should more aggressively pursue QB options when they aren't certain to have a franchise guy, but I'm surprised to hear you'd lean towards the Bears drafting another QB so high in the draft. Would one of Stroud or Will Levis really be that more likely to hit than Fields? Fields is currently 14th in PFF grade, 13th in EPA per play on the season but he's 5th in EPA per play since the Bears went to a more QB run focused offense (week 7) and I'm sure his PFF grading would look very similar to that as well. I know you're generally less inclined than most to factor in a QBs "supporting cast" (which I would generally agree with) but Fields is also doing this in what I think is objectively a terrible situation from an OL & skill position perspective.
I'm not trying to argue Fields is a franchise QB or anything like that, more so that he deserves another year especially when considering what that pick would bring back whether it's via trade or adding an impact player at a premium position elsewhere.
I guess I don't view drafting a QB and giving Fields another year to start as mutually exclusive. You only get so many opportunity to draft near the top, so you have to at least look hard at QBs with those picks, unless you have the handful of QBs who are locked in (Mahomes, Allen, Burrow, Herbert, etc). Competition is good, and I don't put Fields in a bucket beyond facing competition.
I agree teams should more aggressively pursue QB options when they aren't certain to have a franchise guy, but I'm surprised to hear you'd lean towards the Bears drafting another QB so high in the draft. Would one of Stroud or Will Levis really be that more likely to hit than Fields? Fields is currently 14th in PFF grade, 13th in EPA per play on the season but he's 5th in EPA per play since the Bears went to a more QB run focused offense (week 7) and I'm sure his PFF grading would look very similar to that as well. I know you're generally less inclined than most to factor in a QBs "supporting cast" (which I would generally agree with) but Fields is also doing this in what I think is objectively a terrible situation from an OL & skill position perspective.
I'm not trying to argue Fields is a franchise QB or anything like that, more so that he deserves another year especially when considering what that pick would bring back whether it's via trade or adding an impact player at a premium position elsewhere.
I guess I don't view drafting a QB and giving Fields another year to start as mutually exclusive. You only get so many opportunity to draft near the top, so you have to at least look hard at QBs with those picks, unless you have the handful of QBs who are locked in (Mahomes, Allen, Burrow, Herbert, etc). Competition is good, and I don't put Fields in a bucket beyond facing competition.