It would be fair to say that since leaving the Ohio State Buckeyes, Justin Fields’ NFL career has not gone exactly to plan. The 11th overall pick in the 2021 NFL draft was traded by the Chicago Bears to give top pick Caleb Williams a clear runway to start as a rookie. This decision came with Fields having failed to live up to the hype following his arrival in Chicago. A 4-2 start to his career with the Pittsburgh Steelers was unconvincing and saw him benched for Russell Wilson. Now set to enter NFL free agency, one rebuilding franchise could offer Fields another opportunity to start. ESPN’s Seth Walder projects Fields to be brought in as the starting quarterback in the first season under new head coach Kellen Moore. The Saints signed quarterback Derek Carr to a four-year, $150 million deal in 2023. However, the four-time Pro Bowler has done little to justify this contract, and Walder expects the Saints to try to get out of paying his non-guaranteed $30 million base salary in 2025, most likely with a post-June 1 release. According to ESPN, the Saints 2025 projected starter at QB is….. Justin Fields pic.twitter.com/KCP0gzSqrR — Boot Krewe Media (@BootKreweMedia) February 26, 2025 “Assuming it can avoid paying that $30 million to Carr, New Orleans ought to embrace a full rebuild — which means playing players with future upside,” Walder wrote on Wednesday regarding the potential fit between Fields and the Saints “Fields and a rookie could make sense in that context. There’s still a possibility Fields can kick his level of play up a notch and if not, a midround rookie can get some run. My only hesitation is that even Fields might be too expensive for the Saints given how rough their salary cap situation is.” Never forget when Justin Fields silenced the haters in the 2020 CFP semi-finals vs. Clemson -22/28 -385 yards -6 touchdowns Ohio State won 49-28pic.twitter.com/AhSf7RVIe3 — 247Sports (@247Sports) July 29, 2023 If the Saints can afford him, Fields would make a lot of sense for New Orleans following the hiring of Moore, who has vast experience working with a dual-threat quarterback having helped Jalen Hurts lead the Philadelphia Eagles to a Super Bowl title. Fields would be seen as a stopgap option for the Saints but, with Moore at the helm, there is the potential that New Orleans could be an ideal landing spot for the former Ohio State star where he can inject some life into a career in danger of fizzling out.