Greg Gabriel discusses some options at wide receiver for the Bears.
The negotiation period for NFL free agents opens in less than three weeks on March 11. By that evening, we should know the names of several new Chicago Bears. Whether that includes a wide receiver remains to be seen.
There is an obvious need at wide receiver for the Bears as it is one of the weaker position groups on the team. Like in recent years, the wide receiver class in the upcoming NFL Draft is very strong. There is a strong possibility that the Bears will use a high draft pick on a receiver. But one isn’t enough, so it’s a good bet that the team will also sign a free agent.
The wide receiver group as a whole has underperformed the last two seasons. There is no doubt that is the reason Head Coach Matt Eberflus made a change with the wide receiver coach. The new coach is Chris Beaty who was with the Chargers the last three years. Beatty has spent most of his coaching career in the college ranks and is known as a good developer of talent. That is drastically needed by the Bears.
In the last two years, Darnell Mooney regressed and is not nearly the same player we saw in 2020 and 2021. Velus Jones, who was a talented third-round pick in 2022, has done nothing. Last year, the Bears selected Tyler Scott in the fourth round, and he did little. Add to that the Chase Claypool debacle and the lack of production from Equanimeous St. Brown, and it’s no wonder Eberflus made a change in the coaching position.
I realize I may be in the minority, but it would not surprise me if the Bears brought back Mooney on a team-friendly deal. In his first two seasons in the League, Mooney caught 142 passes for 1686 yards and eight touchdowns. There is no way I am going to believe that he could not suddenly play. The talent is there, as well as his 4.38 speed. Regardless of his lack of production, he could be a hot commodity in the free agent market. Team scouts will ask the same question as I did and wonder why there was a drop-off. They may come to the same conclusion in that it was the coach and not the player.
If the Bears try to sign a high-priced free agent, then they are putting a lot of cap dollars into the wide receiver position. I made this same statement when discussing edge players. It can be dangerous to a club’s overall cap if a team spends too much money on one position group. My feeling is if the Bears try and sign a veteran wide receiver, that player won’t be in the upper tier of contracts given. Unless, of course, they don’t spend a lot on the edge position. They must pick and choose where they are going to allocate money.
Looking at the potentially available free agents, a popular name among Bears fans is the Bengals Tee Higgins. Higgins could step in at X and be the big X needed in this scheme, but his price may be too high. Spotrac, the salary cap website, estimates the market value for Higgins to be in the $18.6 million range. If the Bears spend on Edge, that price may be out of the question.
The Colts’ Michael Pittman is like Higgins, a big X with speed, but his market value is estimated as being even higher at $22.7 million. A more affordable option at X could be the Bills Gabe Davis. Davis, who will be 25, has been very productive the last three years as the number two receiver for Buffalo. He is big, physical and can run. His estimated value is a more reasonable $13.6 Million.
If the Bears shy away from the X market and try to sign a guy who could play Z or the slot a name they could be after is Washington’s Curtis Samuel. Samuel will be 27 when the season starts and has been a very valuable performer for Washington. His estimated contract is very reasonable compared to the others at $11.5 million. If the Bears went that route, they would have to find their X in the Draft.
There will be loads of free agent wide receivers on the market and finding the right ones depends on how good the pro scouting department is. It’s their job to track all these players and determine who is a fit for the Bears scheme. They then present those players to the Bears’ decision-makers and coaching staff.
Looking at the Draft, the wide receiver position is loaded. The name most people have at the top of the board is Ohio State’s Marvin Harrison Jr. Harrison fits the big X profile, runs excellent routes, and has a catch radius as good as any receiver in football.
Harrison Jr. gets the accolades mostly because he is the son of Hall of Famer Marvin Harrison and got a of attention playing at Ohio State. There is no doubt that Harrison will be a great pro. That said, there are two other receivers in this draft that some evaluators like even better than Harrison. Those two are Malik Nabors from LSU and Rome Odunze from Washington.
It will be interesting to see how these players test at the Combine next week, but on tape, Nabors plays faster than Harrison, gets separation on a more consistent basis, and his run after the catch skills are rare. He consistently turns short passes into long gains with his speed, elusiveness and run instincts.
Odunze has similar size and athleticism to Harrison and shows equal play speed. While Harrison may have a larger catch radius, Odunze, like Nabors, is better after the catch. What it gets down to is flavor. If a club is ready to select a wide receiver in the Draft, they are going to take the one they feel best fits their needs. All three of the above are worthy of being Top 10 picks and should be stars as pro players.
If the Bears hold on to their number one overall pick and select a quarterback (personally, I feel they will trade the pick), they could very well select a receiver at the number nine slot. One of those top three receivers is sure to be there. If not, the next group of receivers includes Brian Thomas Jr. from LSU, who is another big X receiver with speed. Texas has two great receivers in Xavier Worthy and Adonal Mitchell. South Carolina’s Xavier Legette is a favorite of many scouts, and Florida State’s Keon Coleman is probably underrated. There is no question that good receivers will be available to the Bears well into the third round. In a perfect world, they get one in free agency and the other in the Draft.
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