But for arguments sake, why would they make DJ Moore the centerpiece for the trade and not try to replace Fields if they didn’t trust him to get him the ball? But that’s a minor point. If they didn’t trust him, they should have gotten rid of him. Or at the very least gotten him some competition.
I am not going to disagree. I will suggest you look at the timeline though. April they made the trade, right? OTAs were July. If they really really thought they could coach him up, and you sent us all the "he's working hard in the offseason" puff pieces, then why would they trade him?
I have also suggested to you that maybe they did not like this year's QB draft class (hell, we all know you can find negative and positive assessments each year for each guy) and so they decided to hold onto him simply because they are looking at the rebuild extending past the conclusion of his current contract. (Granted, if they get the 1st pick this year too, they are picking Caleb Williams short of injury, whatever, etc.)
Now we get to July-August and they are seeing Fields has not advanced as they thought. Let's be honest: They had zero competition in camp for any of the projected starters. Now they have to game plan around his deficiencies.