NEWSLETTER
One day after the Chicago Bears were name-checked as a team that could be active on the receiver market before the NFL Trade Deadline, a familiar face popped up as a plausible candidate to hit the trade block.
Timing is everything. So when I saw NFL Network insider Ian Rapoport hinting at the availability of receiver Kenny Golladay, it certainly had my attention:
With Golladay’s 2021 production taking a hit (and his 2022 playing time following suit), there could be a change of scenery situation brewing. Especially if the Giants are willing to pay a chunk of Golladay’s contract in exchange for a late-round pick, which is what Rapoport is hearing.
And considering the Bears’ receiver issues, it is easy to connect the dots: Bears have a need, Giants have a surplus, and Golladay sounds motivated to show out as soon as he can get out. So, yeah, let’s link the Bears and Giants as trade partners. It isn’t a far-fetched concept.
Of course, it wouldn’t be easy. Nothing with the Bears ever is. But a Golladay trade feels like it would be a an especially tedious situation. Rapoport calls any deal “complicated” and notes there is $4.5 million in guarantees remaining on his current salary that could be a holdup in trade talks. Nevertheless, consider me an interested party.
If it feels like Golladay has been on our radar for a while, just know that you’re not imagining things. Firstly, you’re probably familiar with Golladay from the time he spent with the Detroit Lions. But since leaving Detroit, the Bears have had some involvement with Golladay. Remember, they met with (and made a free agent offer to) him in 2021. It was a different time and place for the Bears. Not to mention a different regime. But the organization probably still has notes on Golladay. Maybe the new guys will take a look and like what they see.
The least Ryan Poles and friends can do is kick the tires on Golladay. There could be value in taking a flier on a receiver who had good tape before falling on hard times. We’ve seen receivers fall off in the past. So there is a chance that Golladay’s star burned hot and flamed out fast. But there is a non-zero chance Golladay makes sense as a change-of-scenery candidate. And one who could be under contract for multiple years, which could have value for a rebuilding team like the Bears.
Think about it. Golladay has the rest of this year, along with two more years left on the four-year, $72 million deal he signed in 2021. That deal included $40 million in total guarantees, with $28 million paid at signing. He also has base salaries of $13.25M and $14.25M coming in the next two years, as well as roster bonus cash of $4.5M and $3.5M. Golladay’s cap number in each of the next two years is $21.4M. That looks like a hefty price to pay for a roll of the dice on a receiver. But it isn’t … not when OverTheCap.com’s data has the Bears with $115,036,523 *UNDER* the projected 2023 NFL salary cap. In other words, Chicago’s football team is well-positioned to withstand taking on a contract other franchises might see as burdensome. And they could do so while improving the receivers room.
If it fails, cutting Golladay and creating cap space (because the Giants are already footing the bill on the bonuses) makes for a nice escape clause from an acquiring team’s perspective.
In the end, I’m not quite ready to make a push to use future draft capital to acquire Golladay. There are some real, viable concerns here. The production hasn’t been there in New York. And there aren’t any underlying metrics that suggest that simply leaving for a new city would lead to a return in production. But there is no denying the Bears’ need for receiver help. N’Keal Harry being on IR and Byron Pringle dealing with a calf injury amplify the short-term positional needs. Plus, with the 2023 free agent market thinning out, Poles should be willing to get creative in building out a WRs room. With all due respect to Equanimeous St. Brown and Dante Pettis (who stabilize the floor of the receivers room), this group could use some extra juice.
To be clear, yes, Justin Fields needs to play better. The offensive line needs to play with more consistency (particularly as pass-blockers). And Darnell Mooney, as Fields’ top target, needs to get it together. But the Bears should be leaving no stone unturned in their search for roster help. Even if it is in an unconventional manner.
