Justin Fields' deciding factor for joining Chiefs could turn him into the next Sam Darnold

Justin Fields is probably hoping he's in the middle of his Sam Darnold QB redemption arc. The 27-year-old was traded from the New York Jets to the Kansas City Chiefs for a 2027 sixth-round pick in March after an abysmal 2025 campaign in which he played just nine games on the front end of a two-year $40 million deal.

In his media availability on Tuesday, Fields revealed the "deciding factor" in his decision to show up in Kansas City was head coach Andy Reid. It appears he's going to try and take advantage of the three-time Super Bowl winning head coach's wisdom and also by sitting behind starter Patrick Mahomes in 2026.

Justin Fields has chance a Darnold-like redemption arc with Chiefs: Can he seize the moment?

“I’m already kind of picking his brain a little bit and just observing how he goes about things in the meeting room, on the field, and stuff like that," Fields said.

If there's anybody who can turn his prospects around, it would be Reid who has coached other elite talents besides Mahomes such as Brett Favre, Donovan McNabb, Michael Vick and Alex Smith.

Kansas City will be Fields' fourth team in six seasons, officially making him an NFL journeyman. He likely won't see the field much in 2026, however, as his role will largely be acting as an insurance policy should Mahomes suffer a setback or additional injury (he's currently on track to recover from a torn ACL by Week 1).

If we've learned anything from Darnold's underdog story going from worst to first, Fields has hit his rock bottom chapter — which indicates the meteoric rise could be right around the corner.

Darnold sat for two years behind Brock Purdy after looking like one of the worst first-round draft busts in recent memory with the Jets and Carolina Panthers. After a reset in the Bay Area, he rediscovered his potential with the Minnesota Vikings and then proved it was far from a fluke with the Seattle Seahawks in Super Bowl LX last year.

The similarities between Fields and Darnold are there

While Fields may not be on that exact trajectory (yet), he sits in a very similar situation. Fields is also now on his third team and has the opportunity to prove he's still got much more left to give. The pressure will be off with Mahomes starting and he'll have ample time to redevelop under Reid.

That being said, if Mahomes doesn't relinquish many snaps during the season, then there's a chance Fields fades into obscurity riding the bench. He may only have the preseason to demonstrate he was just the victim of poorly run teams.

Fields put up 1,259 yards, seven touchdowns and only one interception last year in nine appearances for the Jets. In reality, it wasn't actually a terrible tenure from a stats point of view, but he mostly was derailed by a season-ending knee injury after only managing to go 2-7 as a starter. You've got to win in the NFL, and he wasn't doing enough of it.

Fields isn't on the verge of leaping from Mahomes' backup to Super Bowl champion with another team but he'll be a player worth watching throughout 2026 if and when he gets to step on the gridiron. We shouldn't write his NFL career off just yet.

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