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The future at quarterback is murky for the Chicago Bears, who have officially moved on from former second overall pick Mitchell Trubisky and turned to 31-year old Nick Foles.
Chicago has Foles under contract for the next two years, but there’s an unknown incentive in Foles’ contract that gives him the option to void the deal after 2020 and 2021. So there’s a possibility that the Bears could be without a quarterback heading into 2021.
The Bears, who finally have a first round pick after two seasons, will have a chance at drafting another quarterback of the future. Although you can argue the Bears should target an offensive tackle in Round 1. But general manager Ryan Pace hasn’t been good at drafting in the first round — or drafting quarterbacks.
There will be some more experienced options available in the trade market, like perhaps New York Jets quarterback Sam Darnold. The Jets, who are winless through five weeks, appear poised to win the services of Clemson quarterback Trevor Lawrence with the No. 1 pick, which means they wouldn’t need Darnold.
Darnold would likely draw interest around the NFL, and the Bears are among a handful of teams that could be interested. And they wouldn’t have to relinquish a first-round pick in order to do it.
ESPN’s Adam Schefter talked to a few general managers across the league who discussed potential compensation for Darnold. One GM doesn’t it would take a first-round pick to get Darnold.
“I don’t think they’d get a [first-round pick] for Sam, but it also depends what he puts on tape the rest of the year,” one general manager told ESPN. “The problem is, [Darnold] is struggling with his accuracy, his durability — so they’re in a tough spot. And if everyone knows the Jets are taking a quarterback, then they won’t get as much back.”
Schefter explains that another GM believes the most the Jets could get for Darnold would be a second-round pick while the least would be a fourth-round pick.
“The high-water mark would be a [second-round pick] for him,” one GM said this weekend. “I think they could get a [fourth-round pick] for him, but if he finished positive for him, they might get a 2 for him. In college, he was a turnover machine. In the NFL, he has been a turnover machine. I just don’t think he has the credentials to go for a 1.”
Obviously there are a lot of questions at the quarterback position for the Bears moving forward. While Trubisky’s time in Chicago is all but done, Foles isn’t the long-term solution either. That means they’re going to need to bring in another option at quarterback, whether that’s through the NFL Draft, free agency or a trade.
The Bears would do well to explore all of their options at the position that continues to snakebite them.
