Cameron Meredith didn’t play a single regular season snap in 2017, but is currently one of the most popular free agents left on the market. And soon, the Chicago Bears might be faced with a decision regarding his future with the team.
A source tells Brad Biggs of the Chicago Tribune that Meredith has visited the New Orleans Saints. New Orleans is pretty set at receiver with Michael Thomas and Ted Ginn Jr., but with Willie Snead taking visits as a restricted free agent, the team could look to add some depth around its top outside targets.
As for Meredith’s restricted free agent tour, it has now reached three cities after previously meeting with the Colts and Ravens. And yet, Meredith has left each of his first two visits without an offer sheet. We’ll see if that changes with the Saints.
Interest in Meredith is higher than possibly expected despite suffering a season-ending knee injury last season, which says a little something about the faith teams might have in a full recovery and possibly more about how they feel about Meredith’s talent level once he is healthy.
Complicating matters, from a Bears perspective, is the low-round tender offered earlier in March. Any team that signs Meredith to an offer sheet won’t have to give up anything in compensation should Chicago choose not to match. But since the Bears have more than $30 million in available cap space, it would be expected to see them match any reasonable offer that comes their way.
Meredith caught 66 passes for 888 yards during a breakout 2016 season. He is still just 25 years old and could have some prime production years ahead of him. ESPN’s Mike Clay believes Meredith has another solid year ahead of him, and could help Mitch Trubisky become the first quarterback in franchise history to throw for 4,000 yards.
Hopefully, he finds his way back to Chicago.