Did Matt Eberflus accidentally reveal the Bears’ plan for Justin Fields?

Chicago Bears fans across the country are trying to figure out what GM Ryan Poles and head coach Matt Eberflus plan on doing with Justin Fields. Will they run it back for Year 4 with the dazzling yet inconsistent playmaker, or is the team preparing to move on with Caleb Williams or Drake Maye?

It will be an excruciating (and frustrating) few months of deliberation inside and outside Halas Hall. I’m sure Poles is losing sleep over this decision. Meanwhile, Bears fans are eating each other alive on social media.

But maybe there was a massive breadcrumb left by Eberflus about the Chicago Bears’ plan for Fields at the team’s end-of-year press conference.

Check this out:

Did Eberflus tip the #DaBears hand on their QB decision? JF1 coming back? pic.twitter.com/VxGNINIqFi

— Bryan Perez (@BryanPerezNFL) January 11, 2024

Notice his wording?

“He’ll continue to grow as we grow this football team,” Eberflus said.

We? As in, us? As in, together? As in, Justin Fields is our quarterback?

I get it. Eberflus is still in coach-speak mode only days after the 2023 season ended, so maybe he needs to get into full offseason mode before his terminology changes.

But press conferences like this are planned. They’re deliberate. They’re intentional. Words matter, especially if they’re about Justin Fields.

We?

Maybe the Chicago Bears are playing poker. Perhaps they’re trying to inflate their affection for Fields to put potential trade partners on notice that they won’t just give him away.

Or, maybe they think the combination of Justin Fields and the assets they can acquire by trading the first overall pick is best for the organization.

We’ll be playing this guessing game for a while. But if you take Matt Eberflus at his word, maybe there isn’t much to guess after all.

What do you think, Bears fans? Did Matt Eberflus give away the Bears’ plan at quarterback? Create your free user account and comment! And if you’d like an ad-free experience on Bears Talk, consider upgrading to a premium account. It’s just $3.49 per month (or better yet, $29.99 per year.) You’ll unlock our exclusive NFL Draft content, too. Bear Down!