It’s bothersome that Allen Robinson and the Bears have yet to come to an agreement on an extension. Robinson enters the final year of his contract still in his prime and as the Bears’ best offensive performer. And yet, the two sides haven’t come together.
As frustrating as it is to not have a fan favorite like Robinson in the fold for the foreseeable future, at least there isn’t the stress of a deadline bearing down on the situation:
Ryan Pace asked if the clock is ticking on signing Allen Robinson before the season starts: "I don't see this week as a deadline."
— JJ Stankevitz (@JJStankevitz) September 7, 2020
Pace also re-iterated he understands how important Robinson is to the Bears. In a separate tweet, Stankevitz adds that Bears GM Ryan Pace said a potential salary cap crunch that could spring by as much as $23 million won’t stop the team from doing what they want to do with the roster. That’s important to keep in mind as they work toward a potential extension for Robinson (or anyone else for).
One could take solace in this being old hat for the Bears. In previous years, Pace has struck deals with the likes of Akiem Hicks, Eddie Goldman, and Cody Whitehair before the start of the final year of their respective deals. So it’s not as if Pace and this front office don’t have experience in closing a deal in crunch time. Perhaps now would make a good time to reach into that bag of tricks and get something done with Robinson sooner, rather than later.
All things considered, let’s keep some level-headed perspective. Hope for a Robinson deal is not lost just because it hasn’t gotten done to this point. So here’s to having a plan to get it done.