The Chicago Bears’ need for receiver help is one of football’s worst-kept secrets. Because even after trading a second-round pick to the Pittsburgh Steelers for Chase Claypool, Chicago’s receivers room still needs work. Perhaps even an overhaul.
As of today, Claypool, Darnell Mooney, Velus Jones Jr., and Equanimeous St. Brown are essentially locked into spots on the 2023 roster. But there still figures to be some movement in this area. And in an ESPN piece previewing the NFL offseason, Football Outsiders’ Aaron Schatz lends a hand in forecasting the future and predicting the Bears will swing a trade for a new pass-catcher for quarterback Justin Fields to target (bold emphasis mine):
“The Bears will trade for a wide receiver,” Schatz says in his “big prediction” for the Bears’ offseason. “One great candidate would be the Broncos’ Jerry Jeudy, a 2024 free agent. Denver might not have the cap space to retain him, and he’d be a big boost to Chicago’s offense.”
Hmmm … OK. Can’t say I saw this name popping up on our radar. Not at this time anyway. Don’t get me wrong. Jeudy is a good receiver. But he isn’t the best receiver who could make their way onto the market. And he isn’t someone I imagine the Bears prioritizing this offseason. But he would represent an improvement over what the team has now. That isn’t something we should lose sight of as we dissect the offseason marketplace.
Jeudy is coming off a 67-catch, 972-yard, 6-touchdown season. Setting career bests in all three categories going into Year 4 is notable. And he won’t turn 24 until April. You’d think the Broncos wouldn’t want to trade Jeudy if his arrow looks like it is pointing up. But Schatz points out the Broncos’ future cap situation might be a prohibitive factor in keeping Jeudy for the long haul. And if that is truly an issue, then maybe I can see where Denver might want to get out from the most expensive years of Jeudy’s rookie deal while his value is at its highest.
Then again, if getting the most value is the priority in a possible Jeudy trade, I’m not sure what the Bears can offer in a deal. Especially after sending what is turning out to be the 32nd overall pick to acquire Claypool just a few months ago. Simply put, unless it looks like something like what the Browns sent the Cowboys for Amari Cooper or what the Titans shipped to the Rams for Robert Woods, I struggle to see a deal between the Bears and Broncos coming to fruition.
Even still … we should keep an open mind when ideas come our way. Let’s face it, there will be plenty that surface in the 96 days between now and when the NFL Draft ends (and with it, so ends the peak period for NFL transactions). And Jeudy figures to be the first of many receivers linked to the Bears in trade rumors this offseason. Buckle up.