Normally players don’t start inking extensions or re-signings with teams until after the regular season ends. Equanimeous St. Brown broke that track record when he agreed with a one-year deal to stay with the Chicago Bears. He’ll earn $1.25 million, a nice pay raise from what he collected in 2022. St. Brown is nine yards away from having the best statistical season of his career, surpassing 328 yards. While nobody will say he’s been a star, he has performed better than everybody not named Darnell Mooney. He also has a case as the best run-blocking receiver on the roster.
So it’s easy to see why the Bears were interested in retaining him. Where it gets interesting is the fact St. Brown agreed to a deal so quickly. One would think he might try to gauge his market this spring. He’d had a decent year receiving and showcased his run-blocking value. It isn’t hard to believe he might earn a bit more than $1.25 million from somebody. It turns out the 26-year-old had no interest in doing that. He wanted to stay in Chicago and explained why to the media during a locker room session on Thursday.
Equanimeous St. Brown seems to like what the Bears are building.
The 2022 season has been a frustrating one, no doubt. However, it is also evident what GM Ryan Poles and head coach Matt Eberflus are piecing together. The culture they’re crafting is based on hard work, effort, and a relentless pursuit of winning. That should be familiar to St. Brown. It is what he experienced for years in Green Bay. The difference here is the Bears don’t yet have the players necessary to make it work. That will come with time. St. Brown seems to think the people in charge are capable of executing the plan.
His excitement over the future is worth noting. If he felt the Bears were heading in the wrong direction, there is no way he’d be so eager to stay put. This speaks to his belief in the vision, but also the quarterback. Equanimeous St. Brown has said multiple times how much he loves Justin Fields. He sees big things ahead for the young Bears signal-caller. The two have a strong connection. Fields’ leadership has infected the locker room. Wanting to be around that for another year isn’t overly surprising.
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I think the rest of the NFL knows he has 🧱 for hands
Good piece to have around if he makes the team.
@Daniel. Couldn’t agree more. I’ve said it time and time again. I wanted us to be “in” almost every game..and yet have the result positively affect our team’s future. When JF started to turn the corner as a passer I was like YES!! The improvement was limited but it was incremental. (and thus not obvious to casual observers, but for us, the TRUE bear fans we saw the growth.) Poles being a former OLman… gets the ONE MOST IMPORTANT thing! for a QB to be successful. Great protection. In all fairness he could NOT fix that in 1 offseason, with… Read more »
He signed fast because nobody else is gonna want him.
He had a major drop vs Lions on 4th down. I wish we had his brother.