Justin Fields, Jets
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New York Jets quarterback Justin Fields reacting in the middle of an NFL game against the New England Patriots.
The Kansas City Chiefs answered their backup quarterback question by trading a sixth-round draft pick to the New York Jets for Justin Fields, and reportedly may have some unique ideas on how to deploy him even after Patrick Mahomes returns from his knee surgery.
Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk and Mina Kimes of ESPN have both noted the likelihood of the Chiefs putting in some packages specifically tailored to Fields’ skill set.
“Maybe Justin Fields is gonna be a guy who has a package just to keep Patrick Mahomes from doing too much,” Florio said. “The possibilities are endless.”
Mahomes rushed the football 64 times in 14 games last season, which averages out to more than 4.5 carries per contest. And while he tallied career highs of 422 rushing yards and five TDs, the Chiefs certainly don’t want Mahomes running more coming off an ACL tear and heading into his age-31 campaign.
“They could also install some packages for Fields,”Kimes said. “They haven’t been able to use quarterback sneaks with Patrick Mahomes. Well, now you’ve got a quarterback who you can run sneaks with.”
Justin Fields Among Most Capable Rushing QBs in NFL
Justin Fields
GettyKansas City Chiefs quarterback Justin Fields.
Fields has rushed for 2,892 yards and 23 scores at a clip of 5.9 yards per carry across 59 games played (53 starts) in his five-year NFL career.
He put up the second-most rushing yards ever from the QB position in a single season when he tallied 1,143 yards and eight scores for the Chicago Bears in 2022, leading the league with 7.1 yards per rushing attempt. He finished ninth in MVP voting that year.
And Fields can also pass the football with reasonable success under the right system, which is one that doesn’t ask him to do more than he’s capable of, or comfortable with, doing. Fields has completed 61.4 percent of his career pass attempts for 9,039 yards, 52 touchdowns and 32 interceptions.
Fields has one season remaining on his two-year, $40 million contract. Spotrac estimates that the Jets and Chiefs will pay the QB a total of $11 million between them in 2026, with Kansas City footing an estimated $3 million of that total. Next season, Fields’ sixth in the league, will be his age-27 campaign.
Chiefs Need Not Rush Patrick Mahomes Back After Acquisition of Justin Fields
Patrick Mahomes #15 of the Kansas City Chiefs reacts against the Philadelphia Eagles during the second quarter in the game at Arrowhead Stadium on September 14, 2025 in Kansas City, Missouri
GettyKansas City Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes.
Kansas City’s decision to trade for Fields also affords the franchise more breathing room with Mahomes’ injury than many other quarterbacks might.
Fields may be something of a bust considering his status as a first-round pick (No. 11 overall in 2021). That said, he has started for three franchises and is among the most talented and accomplished backup QBs in the league heading into the 2026 season.
The Chiefs have a much improved chance of playing .500 football or better through the first month of the year with Mahomes out now that Fields is in the locker room compared to several other options Kansas City might have pursued.
And the fact that Fields can offer Mahomes some in-season relief and add an interesting element of his own under center, playing snaps — or even full drives — without ever sparking a QB controversy, is also an interesting element Andy Reid has never really had in his offense since drafting Mahomes in 2017.