NEWSLETTER
The NFL Trade Deadline is eight days away. We’ve already seen one splash deal come to fruition, when the Panthers sent Christian McCaffrey to the 49ers, but more could be on the horizon.
And when it comes to the Chicago Bears, The MMQB’s Albert Breer reports tonight’s result against the New England Patriots on Monday Night Football could nudge GM Ryan Poles into sell-mode.
“A Patriots’ win could accelerate the Bears’ approach ahead of the trade deadline and, in that regard, I’ve got my eyes on 32-year-old Pass rusher Robert Quinn,” Breer writes in his latest for SI.com. “I think teams such as the Eagles, Titans, Ravens and Rams probably will, too.”
There are a few notable things here in this brief snapshot from Breer.
Firstly, Breer becomes the latest national pundit to put Quinn on the trade block. It is one thing when Jason La Canfora is leading the charge on the rumor mill, but the Quinn trade rumors take on new life when another reporter tosses them out there. Additionally, Breer name-checks a handful of teams who could come calling for Chicago’s veteran pass rusher. The Eagles, Titans, Ravens, and Rams all make sense as possible trade fits. All of these teams could use pass-rush help. They’re all contenders. And all have a recent history of pushing their chips to the middle of the table to acquire game-changing talent. And after the Rams fell short in their attempt to trade for CMC, they represent a team with a need, draft capital, and motivation to not be out-done by a division rival.
Sounds like a good time to strike if you’re a Bears team looking to sell.
As for the Bears, I hope tonight’s result isn’t what ultimately pushes the team into sell mode. This front office shouldn’t be on the fence about a sell-off. Not after a 2-4 start featuring the league’s third-worst scoring offense suggests Chicago should sell what it can and put its efforts toward building for 2023 and beyond. Seriously, these Bears look every bit of a 2-4 team that struggles to score points. What’s there to straddle the fence on?
Part of me understands how it might not be easy to move Quinn and what is left on his deal in a trade. Remember, there was a clear disconnect between how the Bears and the rest of the league were valuing Quinn during the offseason. And that was *AFTER* a record-breaking 2021 season. I don’t imagine a slow start (1 sack, 2 QB Hits, 1 TFL) to the 2022 campaign helps his trade value one bit. Hence, Quinn is still in Chicago. But it’s not as if there hasn’t been interest. Teams have been rumored to be sniffing around for a Quinn trade since before the 2022 NFL Draft. Last week, Quinn was addressing trade rumors ahead of the deadline — which isn’t an ideal situation for a team trying to max out trade value. And it certainly isn’t ideal for a player working to play through the rumors.
In any case, this is a situation worth monitoring. As a Bears fan, you’re probably rooting for the team’s success (in one way or another). But perhaps one thing you should be cheering for is Quinn to bump that trade value with a few sacks, quarterback hits, tackles-for-loss, and splash plays that make other teams want to pony up in a major way.
