How the Bears can still acquire a running back without free agency
The Bears’ running back draft negligence was reportedly not as bad as it could have been.
This isn’t yet another attempt to consider seventh-rounder Kyle Monangai to be the proverbial needle in the haystack many Bears fans so badly want him to be.
The Bears attempted to trade up so they could draft Ohio State’s TreVeyon Henderson, according to a report by the Tribune’s Dan Wiederer.
They just didn’t get it done. GM Ryan Poles said afterward they found the cost of moving up in several points or “pockets” of the draft too high. The Patriots ended up with Henderson one pick before the Bears’ second-round selection at 39 and instead they took explosive wide receiver Luther Burden III.
So while three other teams found on their draft boards that they could take two running backs in this draft, the Bears couldn’t take one until Mongangai at No. 232 overall.
There is always free agency still, although the selection besides J.K. Dobbins appears to be overrun with 30-somethings, backs coming off severe injuries or both.
There is always one other option. That would be trading for one.
Prior to the draft, rumors floated around about Seattle’s Kenneth Walker and the Jets’ Breece Hall being available in deals. If Poles wasn’t trading up in the draft for Henderson or other backs, he seems even less likely to trade up now for a running back.
There’s no reason to think either of those backs are even available for a reasonable price. There is also the matter of trade compensation. If he wasn’t trading picks and seemed proud of himself for getting a fourth-rounder next year back in one of his trades he did make, then the compensation would have had to be a player.
Who exactly are the most tradeable Bears are this point if there is some back somewhere a team wants to move but doesn’t want a draft pick as compensation?
Cap money always matters when determining this. Another consideration is it’s not going to be a player who they drastically need.
For instance, both Montez Sweat and Tremaine Edmunds have contracts that could easily be traded after June 1 because Sweat would save them $21 million while they would lose $4.08 million in dead cap, and Edmunds would save $15 million with $2.4 million saved.
The problem is both players are needed. The Bears have no edge rusher close to Sweat in quality and their linebackers after T.J. Edwards and Edmunds declines rapidly in experience and quality.
Not every well-paid player is so drastically needed. If the Bears wanted to trade for a back or something other position, they do have players who could be realistic trade bait.
1. T Braxton Jones
A team would need to know he’s over the ankle injury first, but getting a starting tackle in the last year of a contract that counts $3.7 million this year is like receiving a gift. If Jones wasn’t good, it would be a problem but Pro Football Focus had him ranked 21st among tackles last year. Finding a starting quality left tackle at a late date, like jus t before training camp, is extremely difficult. Jones has great value, and with Darnell Wright, Ozzy Trapilo and Kiran Amegadjie all capable of starting at tackle, it wouldn’t be a shock if they made a deal for him.
