Bears’ Kevin Warren has ‘greatest amount of respect’ for Justin Fields — and that matters

Asked why the Bears didn’t win more under his tenure, outgoing president/CEO Ted Phillips pointed to under center.

“Let’s see, we’ve had 45 different quarterbacks, I think, since we won the Super Bowl,” he said Tuesday. “So that’s probably No. 1.”

Technically, 44 different quarterbacks have started for the Bears since 1986 — thanks to new additions Trevor Siemian and Nathan Peterman in a woeful 3-14 season.

To paint it as a damn-our -luck situation, though, is passing the buck far more efficiently than the Bears have ever passed the ball. The inability to find a steady quarterback through the draft (No. 2 pick Mitch Trubisky), trade (Jay Cutler for a two first-round picks, a third and Kyle Orton) and free agency (too many to name) has been, for decades, an organizational failure.

That’s why it matters what Kevin Warren, who is taking Phillips’ place, has previous experience with quarterback Justin Fields. And that he likes him.

While Warren will be judged by how he shepherds the Bears toward their next stadium, he knows that winning will also shape his legacy. And nothing in the sport affects winning more a quarterback.

“I have the greatest amount of respect for [Fields] because I know he’s gonna do everything he possibly can with the talent that he has to be a leader,” Warren said of Fields. “He wants to win championships.”

Speaking publicly for the first time since the 2022 season began, chairman George McCaskey managed to praise Fields for almost everything but his production. The implication: he needs to get better, even if the Bears like his intangibles.

“Well, I’m not a football evaluator,” McCaskey said, giving his usual caveat. “But what I saw that I liked was his leadership, his toughness, his work ethic. His teammates love him. He wants to win. He wants to be great. And he wants to bring championships to Chicago. So, there’s a lot to like there.”

McCaskey and Warren pointed to intangibles because that’s a safer argument than citing passing statistics. The same can be said about McCaskey’s evaluation of coach Matt Eberflus and general manager Ryan Poles after the first 14-loss season in franchise history.

“What were some of the things that you really appreciated,” he said. “Obviously the record wasn’t there, but you like the direction this thing is going …

“The players are buying into it. They’re giving it everything they’ve got. We have a lot of opportunity to improve with Ryan and Matt and Kevin.”

And with Fields.

Tuesday, Warren walked into the weight room at Halas Hall to find the quarterback working out. They embraced.

He and Warren met in 2020, when the Big Ten commissioner canceled fall sports because of the coronavirus. Fields, that Ohio State, was among the players to protest. The league eventually decided to play a truncated season.

“Those are the people that I want,” he said. “Because if someone was not upset about [not] playing, then I really would be concerned.

He has him now.

“He’s talented,” Warren said. “He’s a leader. I loved his passion.”

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