As the madness of free agency comes to an end and we start to look forward to the draft, the Russell Wilson saga looks over and the Bears appear to have named their starting quarterback for the 2021 season.
But I’m just not buying it.
If Chicago does indeed run out Andy Dalton as their starter this year, then I will fully get behind him. He’s a very competent NFL starter with a wealth of experience and a clear upgrade at QB from last season, in my opinion.
But is he really the only move the Bears are making at QB?
The Bears were reported to have made a huge offer to the Seattle Seahawks for Russell Wilson. This was scoffed at by Pete Carroll et al, and most people thought that that would be the end of it.
RUSSELL WILSON TO THE BEARS…PLEASE!
But the rumours of this potential trade for Wilson are just not going away.
Even on the day that Adam Schefter reported that the Seahawks had declined the Bears’ offer, he mentioned that the trade would not be happening at that time. At that time! Meaning this was something that could drag on closer to the draft and maybe beyond that.
Let’s look at the reasons that this thing might still be happening:
- The big names in the world of NFL reporting have continued to say that they would not rule out a potential trade for Russell Wilson, and that the door is still open. This has come from the likes of Adam Schefter, Dianna Russini and Jeff Darlington.
- The Seattle Seahawks have not come out and stated publicly that Russell Wilson will still be on the team this season.
- Russell Wilson has not come out and said that he is staying in Seattle this season.
- The Seahawks have been trying to create cap space. Why not just extend Russell Wilson and free up some extra cap space that way? Do they not see him as the long term QB?
The biggest priority for the Chicago Bears this offseason was to get the quarterback right. While Dalton is a more than capable addition to the team, he doesn’t scream “saver of jobs”.
The 49ers moving up to pick number 3 in the draft after a blockbuster trade with the Dolphins tells me that there will be three quarterbacks going in the first three picks.
That takes away 3 of the top guys for the Bears and leaves them in a situation where they would have to give up the farm to trade up to spot 4, 5 or 6 to get someone with less potential.
The Bears brass isn’t going to authorise giving up everything for an untested rookie, especially when they aren’t one of the better rookie QBs in the draft. They would however allow Pace to trade a similar sort of package for a known commodity. But what options have we got?
Deshaun Watson is likely not going anywhere, especially with his current circumstances.
Matt Ryan has just restructured his deal making a trade very unlikely even if Atlanta takes a QB early.
Sam Darnold is a fine young player, but I don’t see him making a huge impact this year.
The 49ers could make Jimmy Garopollo available for trade, which wouldn’t cost anywhere near what the others would, but I don’t think Jimmy G is the answer for the Bears either.
Who else would you trade for to become THE guy in Chicago?
All the signs are pointing to Wilson.
If the Bears wait until draft night, they could trade 4 1st round picks in addition to whatever else it would take to get Russ to Chicago. Or they could wait until after June 1st and make the trade when Seattle can spread the dead cap over more years.
I think the reported offer that we heard about is only the starting point in these talks, and I would not be shocked if Russell Wilson was rocking the navy and orange come kick-off time in September.
Hey, a guy can dream.
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