This time of year is when the NFL media starts to get a little desperate with their column ideas. Not much is happening and so the speculation runs wild. That is how statements like this recent gem come to light. Kristopher Knox of Bleacher Report wrote a piece detailing one player every team should consider trading at some point in 2020. For the Chicago Bears? He picked Jimmy Graham.
No lie. The tight end they handed a nice two-year deal just four months ago should be shipped out. What is his reasoning for this? An obvious belief that the 34-year old has no gas left in the tank.
“Signing tight end Jimmy Graham to a two-year, $16 million deal was a mistake even before the Chicago Bears drafted Cole Kmet in the second round. While Graham was once a touchdown machine, he’s very much been an average tight end over the last couple of years…
…With Kmet now in the fold, Graham should be viewed as expendable. The Notre Dame product has all the tools needed to be a fixture at the position for Chicago, while Graham is already on a ticking clock. If the Bears can get out from under his deal, they should.”
So basically he’s saying rather than lean on a former All-Pro who might have one good year left, the Bears should put their tight end position in the hands of a rookie 2nd round pick. Why?
Trading Jimmy Graham would accomplish nothing for the Bears
Look, the contract offered to Graham was pricey. There is no arguing that. Yet to say Kmet is the better player at this point? That is just not correct. History says rookie tight ends rarely set the world on fire. Graham may not be the explosive monster he was 10 years ago, but he’s still athletic, still tall, and can still catch. He was never a primary focus in the Green Bay offense.
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People complain about his 447 yards and three touchdowns last season. They neglect to acknowledge that came despite being targeted just 60 times. Travis Kelce was targeted 136 times in Kansas City. If one cut that in half to 68? He would’ve finished with 614 yards and three touchdowns. Philadelphia Eagles star Zach Ertz would’ve had 458 yards and three touchdowns in the same scenario.
Graham can only run the routes. He can’t throw himself the football too. That is why he came to Chicago. Matt Nagy runs an offense that features the tight end quite heavily. The veteran is betting that this type of system will help show people he can still ball. The Bears think he can. So this trade idea never had any logic to it.
