The Chicago Bears are growing desperate for answers on offense. Their utter dismantling in Los Angeles at the hands of the Rams underscored how ill-equipped they are on that side of the ball. The offensive line can’t block anybody and now have mounting injuries. Nick Foles can’t function without decent pass protection, which in turn leaves his receivers helpless. People have resorted to calling for Mitch Trubisky to come back. So where does Ryan Fitzpatrick fit in all this?
This past week the Miami Dolphins made the curious decision to bench the veteran quarterback in favor of their prized 1st round pick Tua Tagovailoa. This despite Fitzpatrick playing some good football. After an ugly opener against New England, he’s thrown for 1,344 yards, 10 touchdowns, and just four interceptions in the past five games. All while completing 70% of his passes.
Miami has won three of their last five games.
So yeah. Puzzling, to say the least. Fitzpatrick admitted he was blindsided by the decision. That it broke his heart. This is why trade rumors have ramped up in the past several days. Given his long history of being able to step into new situations and produce, the 37-year old could be an attractive asset for a QB-needy team.
With Foles struggling and Trubisky no longer an option, Doug Farrar of USA Today urges the Bears to make a run at him while they still can.
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“With Miami’s elevation of Tua Tagovailoa to the starting quarterback role, perhaps the Dolphins could be persuaded to let Ryan Fitzpatrick go for decent draft capital. It’s a stretch because Fitzpatrick is great insurance for the 3-3 Dolphins if Tagovailoa struggles, but if Foles can’t make things happen this Sunday against the Saints’ leaky secondary, Chicago could be looking at a wasted season behind a lack at the game’s most important position.”
Is Ryan Fitzpatrick worth the look?
Cost is going to be a big issue if this even becomes a thing for the Bears. Miami is paying Fitzpatrick $8 million this season. So Chicago would be on the hook for around $4 million or so if they dealt for him at the deadline. There’s also the fact that the Dolphins might be reluctant to part with him. While it’s true they’re moving to Tagovailoa, the young QB has a history of suffering injuries. If he went down, they’d probably prefer Fitzpatrick were waiting in the wings to take over again.
So it would take more draft compensation than normal to secure an aging QB in the final year of his deal. Something GM Ryan Pace isn’t prone to. Then the question becomes how much better can Fitzpatrick even make the offense. It’s true he does have a propensity for making big plays and energizing a team from time to time. That being said, his task would be a tall one in Chicago.
Just start with the offense itself.
Matt Nagy is notorious for having a detailed and complicated system. It puts a lot on the quarterbacks. While Fitzpatrick is a Harvard graduate and highly intelligent, asking him to come in and basically learn the scheme in the space of a week is a bit much. He’d have no chemistry with the receivers and no grasp of the verbiage.
To say nothing of the fact he’d have to stand behind the same offensive line Foles has. It just doesn’t feel like something that will get the desired results. Anything is possible, but the logistics just don’t line up for either side.