Robert Quinn put up a monster season in 2021, breaking the Chicago Bears’ single-season sack record. Impressive stuff, to be sure. So much so, we tend to forget that he didn’t participate in voluntary offseason workouts with the team last offseason. And when he wasn’t in on activities this year, it wasn’t a big deal. After all, who knows how to prepare Quinn’s body for the rigors of a 17-game schedule better than the player himself.
HOWEVA, Quinn was a participant in the team’s mandatory minicamp last summer.
That doesn’t seem like it will be the case this year:
UPDATE — He ain’t here, and it isn’t an excused absence for the pass-rusher:
NFL Network insider Ian Rapoport hears that Quinn isn’t going to be at Halas Hall for the start of mandatory minicamp. Moreover, Rapoport adds that Quinn is training on his own away from the team. Whether this absence will be excused or not is unknown. And while I can see where a team gives a veteran with Quinn’s credentials approval to work out away from the team, I’m not sure how likely that scenario is for this team with Quinn.
It has been an awkward offseason when it comes to Quinn’s status with the team. After the Bears sent Khalil Mack to the Chargers in a trade to jump-start their rebuilding efforts, it felt like anyone could be next. And ahead of NFL Draft weekend, teams were reportedly “sniffing around” for a possible trade.
Nothing came of it, but chatter never fully went away. To that end, it made a Quinn trade feel inevitable. Weeks later, news from Jason La Canfora gave the latest round of trade buzz and took it to another level by reporting that Quinn wants out of Chicago. The Bears seem to want to stand their ground and not deal Quinn. But the reality of their situation as a team tearing down and rebuilding makes me wonder if that isn’t just a front to nudge inquiring teams to make a push.
In any case, this situation bears monitoring.