The Bears parted ways with cornerback Prince Amukamara and receiver Taylor Gabriel on Friday, in order to free up some much-needed salary cap space this offseason.
It was the choice for general manager Ryan Pace, who recognizes that there’s a lot of work to do on the offensive side of the ball. Still, the Bears lost two solid players and high-character guys that will be missed. They also have holes to fill at cornerback and speedy receiver.
Here are five takeaways from Amukamara and Gabriel’s release:
1. The Bears cleared up salary cap space
When all is said and done, Amukamara and Gabriel were both solid free agent pickups for Ryan Pace. But with that said, cutting ties with them was something that Pace had to do.
The Bears had just $5 million in salary cap space for the 2020 season before making the decision to release Amukamara and Gabriel. Those cuts freed up an additional $13.5 million in cap space that will help the Bears this offseason.
While Amukamara was a solid player on Chicago’s defense, the Bears couldn’t justify the $9 million cap-hit he would’ve had in 2020. With the influx of young receivers the Bears have on their roster, parting ways with Gabriel made sense, especially as it saved Chicago an addition $4.5 million in cap space.
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