NEWSLETTER
We, as a site, have been advocating for an Allen Robinson extension to get done sooner, rather than later (… since November of 2019). That means four hundred and forty-eight days have passed since we began discussing a Robinson extension. And as you should be painfully aware, a deal isn’t done. In fact, an extension feels further away from happening than at any point in that stretch of time.
With that being said, you’ll want to clear some time to read this:
Power is shifting to the players. Will Allen Robinson be the next NFL star to seize control? The Bears wide receiver speaks at length to Go Long about how everything got to this point with the #Bears… and what's next.
The Truth on Allen Robinson:https://t.co/KCiPVVqEeU
— Tyler Dunne (@TyDunne) February 18, 2021
There is so much in this piece from Tyler Dunne, but I imagine two sentences will catch your eye: “At no point have the Bears presented a deal that his camp deems reasonable. So, no, they’re not optimistic that a long-term deal can get done in Chicago.”
*Deep breaths*
The Chicago Bears front office has very likely (totally) blown the opportunity to re-sign the team’s best offensive player through a combination of sheer incompetence and being unrealistic about how the receiver market would shape up. Because it seems as if a deal could have been worked out at this time last year. But instead, other receivers got their contracts ironed out. And instead of following suit, the Bears chose the route of passing on a market-level extension. Otherwise, how else can you explain the extended periods without the team reaching out with offers?
Maybe the plan since then was to place the Franchise Tag on Robinson and dare him to play it out in 2021. Or maybe use the tag to piece together a trade. And I suppose there’s a chance this is all one big call your bluff on Robinson following in the footsteps of others who sit out camps. Frankly, if that’s the plan, it’s not a good one. Because pissing off your best offensive player when this specific front office has failed to identify, draft, and develop offensive skill position players for seven years certainly ain’t it.
In the interest of fairness, there is a glimmer of hope. But you have to squint to see it.
Here’s Robinson: “My personal opinion, if something could possibly work? Yes,” the receiver says. “I’m not opposed to being back in Chicago by any means. I’ve even expressed that over the last couple of years — wanting to be the all-time leading receiver in Chicago which, I believe, I’m under 2,000 yards away from that. With all that being said, unfortunately we’ve come to what seems to be a fork in the road.”
Yeah, this front office really fumbled the bag.
