JUST IN: Kurt Warner tells Giants the dangers of going all in on the wrong QB
|JUST IN: Kurt Warner tells Giants the dangers of going all in on the wrong QB
Kurt Warner thinks the Chicago Bears only need to look at the New York Giants and Daniel Jones to see why they shouldn’t stick with Justin Fields as starting quarterback.
Warner, who played for the Giants in 2004, thinks his old team made a mistake signing Jones to a long-term contract last offseason. It’s a mistake the Bears can’t repeat with Fields, especially when they own the top pick in the 2024 NFL draft.
Speaking to reporters ahead of the 2024 Super Bowl (h/t Ryan Dunleavy of the New York Post), Warner described the dangers of going all in on the wrong quarterback: “When you get to the point we are at in this league with quarterbacks — what you have to pay them and what that means for your organization — you better know that he’s the guy. That, to me, is where teams get in trouble.”
Warner believes the Giants ignored those dangers when they handed Jones a $160 million deal: “The Giants go give $40 million [per year] to Daniel Jones. He hasn’t shown us he’s that guy. We’ve seen glimpses, maybe. The Giants are still behind the 8-ball because he’s still not that guy. Maybe he will be, but he’s not right now — and they paid him.”
There’s a cautionary tale here for the Bears, according to Warner: “When you have three years and don’t take out the doubt, I think you have to move on. You can’t just go pay that guy $50 million in hopes that those glimpses you saw will turn into greatness. It may be unfortunate because some of those guys play too early — they are not ready — but their next contract will be determined by it.”
Hall of Famer Warner concluded the Bears can’t waste the opportunity they have to grab the best QB in this draft class: “You have to put in the element of [the Bears] have the No. 1 pick. It’s not as if they have No. 23 and they are just going to go get the next quarterback.”
Ironically, the Giants should hope the Bears heed Warner’s advice and move on from Fields. If not, it could mean Big Blue’s NFC East rivals the Washington Commanders moving up in the draft to select USC passer Caleb Williams.