With trade came 'relief' for Steelers QB Justin Fields - ESPN

PITTSBURGH — Justin Fields received the long-awaited call as he ate a late dinner in Italy on March 16.

Weeks earlier, the Chicago Bears informed their former first-round quarterback at his exit meeting they planned to move on from him and draft a quarterback with their No. 1 overall pick. Finally, after a lengthy limbo dating to the 2023 offseason, Fields learned he was a Pittsburgh Steeler in exchange for a conditional sixth-round pick at 10 p.m. in Milan, Italy.

«We were in the same situation last year with having the No. 1 pick, and it was just a little bit different this year,» Fields said Tuesday, speaking for the first time since the trade. «I'm not naive to the fact that — I can read body language and stuff like that. It wasn't really just a shock to where it's like, 'Oh, I got traded.' I knew what was going to happen beforehand. So I'm just glad I got traded to the spot that I wanted to be at.»

He also added it was a «relief» to know his destination.

Prior to consummating the trade with Pittsburgh, Bears general manager Ryan Poles said he wanted to «do right» by the team's 11th overall pick in 2021. After his first OTAs practice in Pittsburgh, Fields expressed gratitude for the Bears' brass.

«Shoutout to Poles, we communicated to 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 glad he was able to put me in a spot where I wanted to be at.»

Fields also added he looked back on his time with the Bears with appreciation: «There was a lot of ups and downs, but all in all, I appreciate every relationship that I built, all my teammates. They know that nothing but love for the city, for the fans and for my old