On the one hand, every NFL team is going to say every positive thing about any new player during the offseason. On the other, it's still notable that the Kansas City Chiefs feel the way they do about Justin Fields.
The Chiefs decided to avoid another year of the free-agent carousel they've depended on for the last several offseasons to find a backup quarterback behind Patrick Mahomes. Instead of another one-year agreement, the Chiefs went the trade route to coax Fields away from the New York Jets in exchange for a sixth-round selection in the 2027 NFL Draft.
The move represented a seismic shift in approch on a couple of fronts. First, the Chiefs were used to leaning on low-cost vets with little security behind a younger Mahomes—think Blaine Gabbert or Gardner Minshew or Carson Wentz. Secondly, Fields was younger, the first upside play at the position since Mahomes took over the starting role.
The shift was notable because the Chiefs' backup quarterback was suddenly more important than ever before. With Mahomes coming off a season shortened by torn ligaments in his knee, the Chiefs knew that whoever was QB2 was a possible QB1 to start the year. There are no guarantees for Mahomes' return timeline so early in the offseason, no matter how rosy the updates are in the spring. Hence the reason that Veach decided to invest a bit more in the role.
The Chiefs head coach had very positive things to say about his first interactions with Justin Fields.
One month later, Chiefs head coach Andy Reid was asked about his opinion of Fields, knowing that he's up for potential starting reps in September. While Fields has yet to even go through his first mandatory minicamp with the Chiefs, Reid still had plenty of praise for the young quarterback.
"I appreciate Justin and the way he’s gone about everything so far. He’s been great with everything. I don’t know him as well as I will have known him once I get through a few weeks here. But I like, from afar, what I’ve seen. I like when I’ve met with him what I’ve seen. I mentioned at the owner meetings that we didn’t bring him in to be a gadget guy, although he can do every gadget there is.
"But we didn’t bring him in to do that. We brought him in ‘cause he’s a legitimate quarterback and a starting quarterback in the National Football League, and we’re lucky enough to have him here. So, if that’s the role that he plays early in the season, we have full confidence that he can do a great job with that."
Fields' mercurial performances so far in his young NFL career left him without an obvious place to start in 2026. Now he's not even competing for such a role without Mahomes' injury in play. That said, working with Mahomes and Reid, among others, gives him a great chance to rehabilitate his image, learn from the league's best offensive minds, and return to the open market with greater potential value. Reid sounds like he's a believer already, and the Chiefs might be counting on him to follow through on those remarks.
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