Bears QB Justin Fields given 2nd-best odds to win OROY

In the last five years, three quarterbacks have won the NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year award. No Bears player has won the award since Anthony Thomas in 2001. Is this the year the former trend continues and the latter dry spell ends?

There’s no way to say for sure, but odds seem to favor such a possibility. Bears quarterback Justin Fields is being projected as having the second-best odds to win the award at +600. For reference, that means that a $10 bet would result in a $60 win and a payout of $70. He trails just Jaguars quarterback Trevor Lawrence, whose odds come in at +274.

Fields’ odds have dipped slightly since being drafted by the Bears, but he stills finds himself with favorable odds among other offensive rookies in this year’s class. Quarterbacks like the Jets’ Zach Wilson and the 49ers’ Trey Lance — both of whom having been drafted before Fields — trail the Ohio State alumnus in odds.

Andy Dalton being on Chicago’s roster could make it tougher for Fields to put together a full season of starting production that Lawrence or Wilson would be able to, assuming they’re able to stay healthy and win the starting job from Week 1. However, the upside he brings as a dual-threat quarterback and having a true No. 1 receiver like Allen Robinson could make for a seamless transition to the NFL level from a production perspective.

With no quarterback in Bears history having passed the 4,000-yard mark, one would assume that, if Fields is able to take over the starting role from Day 1, he stands a strong chance of being able to reach that mark. Doing so would likely boost his odds of winning the award.

As a fun long-shot bet, Bears running back Khalil Herbert also makes an appearance among rookies with listed odds: he currently holds the 31st-best odds to win Offensive Rookie of the Year at +6000.

What do you think about these listed odds? Sound off in the comments below.