John Mullin of NBC Sports Chicago set the city afire when he provided his explode update on the Bears Jarvis Landry trade. Apparently, the two teams were discussing a complicated deal. It would involve the Miami Dolphins sending Landry, the #11 pick and a third round pick to the Bears. In exchange, they would get the #8 pick and running back Jordan Howard.
Needless to say, plenty of fans were not thrilled about this news. Sacrificing a proven stud in Howard just to fill a need at wide receiver? Filling it with a player many don’t even consider a true #1 target and who has a history of being difficult to work with? It’s just hard to imagine that the Bears would be that desperate and that shortsighted.
Then again everyone is acting like the trade has already happened. It hasn’t and constant reports hint nothing is close. Ian Rapoport and Pro Football Talk both indicated the proposed Bears trade was not even valid, and this was later backed up by former scout Greg Gabriel. So what exactly is going on?
Worth noting: There is zero desire by the #Bears to trade RB Jordan Howard, sources say. Doesn’t sound like there will be any splashy Jarvis Landry for Howard deal.
— Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) March 3, 2018
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To add, originator of said rumor is a food service employee at Dolphins who “overheard” a convo. Like I said, Bullshit from the start.
— Greg Gabriel (@greggabe) March 3, 2018
Bears Jarvis Landry trade may not even need to happen
The truth is this entire situation may be a carefully crafted exploitation of the rumor mill by Miami to stoke the fires of “reported” interest in Landry. The truth is far different. A source informed me that the Dolphins are negotiating from a weakened position and they know this. Not only is Landry not generating a ton of interest, but Miami is hampered even more by other factors.
“The push is coming from Miami putting out who is and isn’t interested but there ain’t as much interest as reported.
The feeling is a tagged player being traded is he’s a rental and several teams are wary of that.
Cleveland and San Francisco will not waste any of their picks. The Bears don’t want to waste picks either. Baltimore could be desperate enough because of how the season ended and the need of offense.”
Indeed it’s no secret that Landry has every intention of being paid this off-season. He stated clearly in a video he recently posted that he will not play under the franchise tag. Seeing guys like Ryan Shazier suffer life-threatening injuries made him think about his family and his future. He’ll only play once his long-term financial security is settled.
I HEARD ONCE "RECYCLE YOUR PAIN" MAKE SURE YOU PUT YOUR ENERGY BACK INTO YOURSELF. WORK FOR WHAT YOU WANT. BEING THE BEST SHOULD BE THE ONLY REASON YOU WANT TO BE ANYTHING AT ALL. PAIN IS TEMPORARY, GLORY IS FOREVER. THE BEST IS YET TO COME @DIETRALANDRY @RANDGETLIN pic.twitter.com/HQcUq0u229
— Jarvis Juice Landry (@God_Son80) March 3, 2018
This creates a big problem for the Dolphins
That isn’t the only issue for Miami. They’ve been hemmed in by their own mistakes. Their recent trade for defensive end Robert Quinn has put their salary cap in a bad situation. Well into the red. This means they have to shed salary if they’re even going to fit him onto the roster. Landry, who plans to sign the tag next week, may actually be forcing their hand.
My source confirmed this much. Teams around the league know how strapped Miami is for cash and how desperate they are to trade Landry. This puts them in a superior negotiating position. They could just choose to sit back and wait, forcing the Dolphins to either work their way under the cap likely at great cost or rescind the tag and let Landry walk.
“Once it’s signed there’s no going back. Teams will lowball them and they’ll be stuck with Landry.”
This means the Bears don’t have to do anything. They can sit back and wait. Either the price to acquire Landry will drop as the season gets closer or they can prepare a strong free agent push once Miami removes the tag, making him a free agent. This comes down to GM Ryan Pace. Is he that desperate or can he stay patient? We shall see.
