Allen Robinson has served as Chicago’s clear-cut No. 1 chain-mover since the 2018 season, but the Pro Bowl wideout is less than two months from free agency. And the Bears may need to find a new No. 1 pass catcher.
The Bears are bracing for the possibility Robinson departs in free agency, Jeff Dickerson of ESPN.com notes, adding that the team appears content to let the seven-year veteran test the market instead of forking over top-five receiver money to keep him.
That strategy may be fine for Robinson, who sounds eager to test free agency again. While Robinson said recently he was open to returning to the Bears, he reflected on the parties’ failed extension talks.
“I personally feel like we had an opportunity to be able to get something done over the past 365 days,” Robinson said, via Dickerson (on Twitter).
The Bears would have the franchise tag as an option with Robinson, but they are — prior to any roster cuts — sitting at $10MM over the projected 2021 cap. This is without Mitchell Trubisky factoring into Chicago’s 2021 cap sheet, though the polarizing quarterback is not a lock to be back next season. It will be interesting, in a year in which Matt Nagy and GM Ryan Pace will likely be on hot seats, if the Bears will be willing to let Robinson walk.
A former Jaguars third-round pick, Robinson agreed to a three-year, $42MM deal with the Bears in 2018. But the sides were unable to reach an extension agreement last year. Robinson envisions himself as the market’s top wide receiver, which would put him — even in a year in which the salary cap is expected to decline for only the second time ever — in the $20MM-per-year conversation.
Free agency’s WR1 will be a tough conversation this year. As of late January, young standouts Kenny Golladay, Chris Godwin, JuJu Smith-Schuster and Corey Davis are set for free agency. Barring extensions, veterans T.Y. Hilton, A.J. Green, Marvin Jones and Antonio Brown would stand to join them. Robinson’s previous three-year Bears deal puts him in between these groups, age-wise, at 27.
Despite playing for a team with one of the league’s shakiest quarterback situations, Robinson posted back-to-back 1,100-plus-yard seasons over the past two years. The Bears have Anthony Miller under contract for another season and drafted Darnell Mooney in 2020. But a Robinson exit would leave the team with a major need on offense.
This whole situation was dumb and avoidable. Pace and Nagy competing for their jobs and their stuck in a position of having their best weapon just… leave? This year is the biggest lame duck season for the Bears.
They’re not a WR away from contending. Franchise him and trade him for anything. They’re rebuilding whether anyone wants to admit it or not.
I agree with this. Unfortunately Pace has no concept of value or forward thinking, so I have no faith that will happen.
Pace is only good at drafting rounds 2-5 he is abysmal as a gm besides that, and Nagy is a moron talking about “be you” while never creating an offense that allowed players to play to their strengths, until the bears are sold the team is garbage, fans must take a stand, and stop supporting the McCaskey dumbasses
Pace will solve this problem by bringing the TE depth chart back up to 9 or 10…lol.
^^
This
Probably going to have to franchise tag him at this point or vastly overpay.
They don’t have the money. It’s why it should have been done last offseason. Pace is a moron for not doing it.
Correct. Or they should have traded him while he still was under contract. Now they have no choice but to let him leave. Pace is a clown.
That’s a loaded WR market, I personally wouldn’t call Robinson a top 5 receiver, at a reach he might be top 10. So I can understand not wanting to cut him the check especially considering you haven’t found your franchise QB.
That said, I don’t think Robinson will get top top dollar. These so many good names available and if he’s saying I want 20mil and others are saying I’ll take a little less then he might have to wait a while. Especially with the cap declining it might be a market in which you have to take a little less.
I’d say he’s right at #10 area. That’s not worth 20 mil a year and the bears should let him walk if he won’t budge on that. They should offer 5/75. That is about where I have him priced…which he’d turn down, but that’s about where he should be.
Yeah idk in no order at all I have Thomas, Hopkins, Jones, Adams, Hill, Diggs, Evans as 7 that are definitely better.
Then you have the likes of OBJ, Kupp, Allen, Godwin, Theilin, Metcalf, Cooper, Galloday that are all near about the same level with Robinson. That’s why I said at a reach he’s top 10.
I don’t know about that. It’s hard to measure how difficult it is to be in a lame offense with poor QB play, no running game and no other WR weapons to take the pressure off and still have consecutive 1000 yard seasons. He also led all wide receivers in the number of contested catches made, which is significant. I wouldn’t be surprised at all if more than one team with the cap room, is willing to pay him 20 mill a year.
Let Robinson and Trubisky leave. And bring in Golladay and Stafford. The rival Lions’ WR/QB. Lol.
Lions won’t trade Stafford to the Bears but you can have Golladay and we will take Robinson
They’ll splurge on a garbage QB, though. Typical Bears (myopic, cheap, dumb personnel moves).
Honestly I’d like to see the Bears get Cam Newton, invest in the O Line and maybe get a couple cheap receivers.
Make the offensive plan be running the ball either with Cam or with Cohen and occasionally throw it short with multiple good TEs and a receiver or two. Newton would be cheap, bears love TEs and so mainly I would be investing in your o line. You’d make metres down field in long possessions controlling the football. Plus you have a good defence to keep the scorers low. Then occasionally you can surprise the opposition with some tricky plays either play action fakes, multiple TE lines for a throw or a surprise deep ball when they expect it less.
Cam Newton? The dude can’t throw the ball, he had 5 passing tds in 14 games.. this is the problem with Bears fans, they’re delusional .
Not a bears fan, and if you read properly I said get Newton and use him and Cohen to run the ball and very occasionally throw it.
Pats have no running game and no receivers hence why he sucked. In Chicago you get Cam an o line and run a bunch of plays for him to run the ball or Cohen to run the ball. Occasionally try throw it and catch teams out but mainly just run. Long possession, keeping the football under control and having a good defence for low scoring games
Cam Newton sucked because he sucks. He doesn’t process information fast enough to be a passer in this league. We saw what he can do in a run heavy offense, he’s nothing more than a short yardage back at this point in his career. Anyone who thinks otherwise is clinging to 2015 for dear life.
Chicago this will be worst than when the Cubs gave Lou Brock away or the running back from SF was cut by the Bears & Pace the guy was a beast plus could’ve got a TE that Kelsey from KC Chiefs but we took a TE who was cut but started for Miami. This year
Keep Robinson
Wow pace looks better by the day even if you grab a miracle and land Watson who he gonna throw to or hell any new QB for the matter Miller can’t consistently get open or read the Defense wims/Ridley get barely any clock so let’s the best offensive weapon leave on a make or break year! I say we treat Soldier Field like Covid avoid it all together hit them pockets and Ratings you wanna see actually change
Amen brother
Facts.
Strange offseason for the Bears. Your coach and GM are on the hot seat so they have to do something at QB and anything possible to improve next year, but they’re also 10 mil over the cap with a top 10 WR about to leave.
Pace has made some world class blunders in free agency that all but guarantees his best offensive decision is gone. I’ll be really curious to see who’s arrived and who’s left when the dust settles.
My guess is not much changes beyond Robinson and Trubisky leaving, they get smoked by a much harder schedule and the next coach and GM get a top 5 pick to try and find the elusive high end QB.
Robinson passed up a deal from GB to go to Chicago. Maybe this time GB can get him to sign on the dotted line.
GB has zero use for him. None.
This salary cap disaster is probably why the Bears kept Pace. What new GM would hire into this fiasco. Might as well let next year be a huge bust and give the new guy a good draft position to start with.
The only way the Bears will ever get better is if all their fans buy Rodgers jerseys and become Packer fans.