Justin Fields of the Chicago Bears scores a touchdown against the Atlanta Falcons at Mercedes-Benz Stadium on November 20, 2022 in Atlanta, Georgia.
Kevin C. Cox/Getty Images
The Bears weren’t blindsided by the trade of Justin Fields to the Steelers last month. But that didn’t make it any easier.
“It’s tough, man,” linebacker T.J. Edwards said Tuesday. “You grow with these guys. You go through a lot. Go through all those uncomfortable times of losing games but also the good times of winning.
“But sadly that is the NFL. That is the reality of what we do. You just wish him the best. Good people … Anyone who comes in here is truly a good person. So with good people you want them to have great things moving forward, and that’s what we want for him.”
Right tackle Darnell Wright considered himself friends with Fields in their lone season together.
“I just thought to myself, ‘Whatever works best for the team, best for him,’” he said. “I hope he does well. I know he’ll do well.”
Edwards, who went to Lakes Community High School in Lake Villa, knows the pressure that comes with playing for a franchise so starved for elite quarterback play. He was one of the Bears veterans who went to dinner with USC quarterback Caleb Williams, the likely No. 1 pick, earlier this month.
A rookie quarterback doing well would be “incredible for all of us,” Edwards said.
“I think that’s the hope … ” he said. “We’ll embrace them and they’ll fit into our culture. Because I know our front office does their research for sure.”
Wright is excited about Williams, too.
“I think once all the media stuff [during the draft] dies down he’ll get to work just like any other player would,” Wright said. “He’ll be good.”