Franchise tag Jaylon Johnson? Trade Justin Fields? It’s a big week for Chicago Bears

It could be a momentous week ahead for the Bears. General manager Ryan Poles has some decisions to make.

The first, and most pressing, one is what to do with cornerback Jaylon Johnson? The deadline to place the franchise tag on Johnson is 3 p.m. Tuesday. If the Bears are going to sign Johnson to a long-term contract, that will have to happen before Tuesday’s deadline.

Additionally, free agency is just a week away. If any team is going to trade for a veteran quarterback like Justin Fields, it could make sense to complete a deal before free agency. Poles certainly can wait on trading Fields, if he decides to do that, but that’s only going to limit his potential trade partners. More on that below.

The latest on Jaylon Johnson

Using the franchise tag doesn’t eliminate the possibility of the Bears signing Johnson to a long-term deal at a later date, but it would be in the best interest of both sides to get a deal done now. Poles said last week at the NFL Scouting Combine that he believes the Bears have come in with a strong offer.

“When I say come strong, that means cash flows are strong, guarantees are strong, the term is strong for him,” Poles said. “Being with his age [Johnson is 24], there’s a really good opportunity to go back to the market again and continue to earn money and play well and hopefully that’s with the Bears for a long period of time. So I’m excited about that.”

When I say come strong, that means cash flows are strong, guarantees are strong, the term is strong for him.”

—  Ryan Poles, Bears general manager

Johnson turns 25 this spring. If the Bears are offering a four-year contract, Johnson would have the opportunity to hit free agency again ahead of his age 29 season.

Is Johnson worth the $20 million-per-year salary that he could be asking for? Shaw Local took a deeper dive on that very topic here. A contract similar to Jaire Alexander’s in Green Bay could make a lot of sense (four years, $84 million; so $21 million per year). Johnson’s production level was quite similar to Alexander’s before he signed his deal in May 2022.

Poles has been optimistic about a contract negotiation before. He was optimistic about his offer to linebacker Roquan Smith, a negotiation that ultimately ended with the Bears trading Smith to Baltimore for a pair of future draft picks. Ultimately, it takes two sides to make a deal.

The Bears and Johnson also had productive talks last fall – at least from Poles’ perspective – that fell apart as the trade deadline neared. Johnson asked for a trade, but no deal emerged. At the time, he said he wasn’t “just going to take anything.”

Whatever happens, Johnson is almost certain to be a member of the Bears next season. But the franchise tag has a way of rubbing star players the wrong way.

Both sides would much prefer to avoid the franchise tag.

Is a Justin Fields trade coming?

Sports Illustrated’s Albert Breer dropped an interesting nugget in his latest column. Per Breer, the Bears wanted to have a top-30 visit with potential top quarterback prospect Caleb Williams this week. That’s highly unusual. Ultimately, the two sides decided to wait until after USC’s March 20 pro day, per Breer, but it still gives a peek inside the Bears’ process.

Teams are allowed to bring up to 30 prospects to their facilities for in-person visits during the pre-draft process. Typically, those top-30 visits don’t begin until late March or early April after pro days on college campuses. Teams reserve those visits for prospects they are highly interested in, or prospects they have questions about.

Williams did not participate in medical evaluations at the NFL combine. He said he will do so during his in-person visits. Presumably, the Bears also would want to spend more time with Williams to understand him better as a person and determine if he fits the culture they’re trying to build.

Considering a visit this week – again, highly unusual – would fast track the Bears’ evaluation of Williams. It could be an indication, and this is speculation, that the Bears might be looking to trade Fields ahead of or during free agency next week. Would Poles do that without a medical evaluation of Williams? It’s hard to say, but it also might not matter if Poles has multiple quarterbacks he likes in the draft.

The only person who truly knows what the market for Fields is right now is Poles himself. The fact that he says he wants to “do right” by Fields makes it seem as if he’s going to trade the 24-year-old QB. Reading the tea leaves, however, there’s only so many teams that need a quarterback and aren’t in position to potentially draft one in the first round. There could be as many as five or six quarterbacks drafted in the first round, making this an extremely strong year at the QB position (last year there were three; two years ago there was one).

Poles could wait, but when free agents Kirk Cousins, Ryan Tannehill and Baker Mayfield find homes, that likely will eliminate three potential teams from the Fields sweepstakes.

Looking at the draft order, there’s a few teams inside the top 10 who might prefer a veteran to drafting a rookie. New England? Tennessee? Atlanta? Those teams might also prefer to have a rookie on a four-year deal.

Outside the top 10, Minnesota (if Cousins leaves), Denver, Las Vegas and Pittsburgh are potential QB-needy teams. Nobody selecting after Pittsburgh needs a quarterback unless Mayfield leaves Tampa Bay.

Would new Las Vegas offensive coordinator Luke Getsy want to hitch his wagon to Fields again? Feels unlikely. Would the Bears trade Fields to an NFC North rival such as Minnesota? Also feels unlikely.

The point is, the options feel limited. There’s probably only a handful of teams, at most, that would consider trading for Fields. At at least one or two of them could find a veteran QB in free agency.

Poles’ hand is going to be strongest before free agency. There’s a very real possibility Fields could be dealt within the next week.