Former Pittsburgh Steelers quarterback and perennial project Justin Fields found a new home this offseason.
After spending just one season and six starts in Pittsburgh, the Steelers declined to invite Fields back, and he found a two-year, $40 million deal waiting for him in New York with the Jets. It's also got $15 million in guarantees.
That's far more than he would've ever gotten in Pittsburgh.
After being drafted by the Chicago Bears before flaming out there (who doesn't?), Fields was traded to the Steelers last offseason to compete for the starting job with veteran free agent Russell Wilson.
Neither one won.
ESPN's Bill Barnwell named Fields in his list of players who are most likely to breakout or flop in 2025.
"This might not be Fields' last chance as a starter, but it's probably his last chance at entering an offseason with a meaningful guarantee to start somewhere," Barnwell said. "Traded by Chicago to Pittsburgh for a Day 3 draft pick last year, he did enough in six starts with the Steelers to earn interest in free agency from the quarterback-needy Jets. His new deal guarantees him $30 million of the $40 million he's owed over the next two seasons. The hope for Fields is that the Jets lean into his strengths in the QB run game, which the Bears didn't really do.
"The Steelers jumped a little further in, but after he averaged just over five designed runs (excluding scrambles and kneel-downs) across his six games as a starter, he was benched for Russell Wilson."
The question will be if new Jets OC Tanner Engstrand can work an offense around Fields' strengths better than Arthur Smith did in Pittsburgh last season. The answer is almost certainly yes.
Smith struggled to get the offense going in Pittsburgh under both quarterbacks. But, while both found a small measure of success, Smith never made adjustments for each player under center.
Now Fields gets another chance in New York.