Then there were three. Okay, technically it’s four but does anybody honestly believe the Chicago Bears are going to sign Jameis Winston? No. This chase for GM Ryan Pace and head coach Matt Nagy has come down to three names. Philip Rivers is off to Indianapolis. Teddy Bridgewater went to Carolina. Tom Brady is head to Tampa Bay. Case Keenum and Marcus Mariota settled for backup jobs.
For the Bears, it’s about Andy Dalton, Nick Foles, and Cam Newton.
It’s a virtual guarantee at this point that they will end up with one of them. The only other two teams in the mix at this point are the New England Patriots and Los Angeles Chargers. The Chargers can’t be considered players for either Dalton or Foles. Their only possible pursuit is Newton and even that is questionable. The Patriots are heavily connected to Dalton so that’s one to watch.
The negotiation that Chicago probably has complete control of is Foles. Jacksonville had one other team to use as leverage on that front in the Colts. Now that door is closed. So they are left with two options. Keep the quarterback as a $21 million backup or accept a deal on the Bears’ terms.
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Chicago Bears were right to stay patient
The only know hard push that the Bears made in the past two days was for Bridgewater. They had significant talks with the former Saints backup about coming in as their new starter. However, it appears a connection in Carolina (and more money) ended up swaying him to sign there instead. While they may not have scored there, it’s not like the team is in terrible shape. There was always going to be a couple of options left on the table.
For one of the few times in NFL history, the supply of quarterbacks exceeds the demand. That means it’s a virtual certainty that the Bears will end up with one of those three guys when the smoke finally clears and it will come at a price that is favorable to them. It would’ve been easy for Pace to act aggressively. To give the people what they wanted in a blockbuster splash.
This was the smarter path though. He remained disciplined, knowing full well the odds were in his favor that he’d get a competent QB at a price he could afford if he simply waited it out. Now it’s a matter of seeing who it will be.
