Thursday, March 28, 2024

The Five Worst Mistakes Made By The Chicago Bears Franchise In The Last Five Years

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Here are the five biggest mistakes made by the Chicago Bears franchise in the last five years (2011-2016). It is very hard to limit this list to five, and some will surely disagree on which ones were the absolute worst, so feel free to vote on your favorite disastrous decision at the end. 

#5. Trading Greg Olsen To The Panthers – 2011

In July of 2011, the Chicago Bears traded tight end Greg Olsen to the Carolina Panthers in exchange for a third-round pick in the 2012 NFL Draft. Olsen had just finished his fourth season with the Bears which was a slight decline from his 2009 campaign where he scored eight touchdowns. In his previous three years with Chicago, before getting traded, Olsen scored 18 total touchdowns. His receptions peaked at 60 in 2009, but it was obvious to everyone he had unique scoring ability.

Olsen went on to appear in three Pro Bowls for Carolina and he’s played five, full, 16-game seasons in a row. He’s also been considered a top TE in the league for the last few years.

Chicago never selected with Carolina’s third-round pick, instead they traded it to Miami as part of the deal for Brandon Marshall. That turned out to be quite the mistake considering Russell Wilson was still on the board during that pick. The Bears went on to draft Brandon Hardin with their own third-rounder that year and he never once appeared in a real game due to various injuries.  Marshall only stayed with the team for three seasons and caused a lot of damage in the locker room each day he was here. The Bears are still indirectly recovering from the decision to trade Olsen back in 2011.

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