CLEVELAND – The Chicago Bears traded up nine spots with the New York Giants to select Ohio State quarterback Justin Fields at No. 11 overall in the NFL draft.
Fields is a two-time Big Ten Offensive Player of the year and is the second Buckeye quarterback to go in first round in last three drafts.
One published report said as many as 50,000 people were expected around the various draft venues, including the Browns’ First Energy Stadium and the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, with COVID-19 safety protocols in place and everyone within the “Draft Experience” area fully vaccinated.
Fields’ selection gives Ohio State a first-round draft pick for six consecutive seasons, the second-longest active streak among all schools with Alabama at 13.
Quarterbacks Trevor Lawrence of Clemson and Zac Wilson of BYU were the first two players off the board, as expected, in the NFL draft. The San Francisco 49ers made it three straight QBs with North Dakota State’s Trey Lance and four quarterbacks were taken in the first 11 picks.
Fields is the second quarterback drafted by general manager Ryan Pace since he was hired in 2015.
The Bears traded up a spot in 2017 to take Mitchell Trubisky at No. 2 over Patrick Mahomes and Deshaun Watson. Trubisky is now a backup in Buffalo.
The Bears went 8-8 last season for the second year in a row, then lost at New Orleans in the wild-card round.