Post by scorpion42 on Dec 5, 2009 9:17:20 GMT -7
My comment: I saw this rumor & thought it was interesting.
More on Bears' fade: There's little to trade
Who's worth a first-round pick? Not even once-valuable Hester
December 4, 2009
BY MIKE MULLIGAN mmulligan@suntimes.com
Forget firing coaches or a front-office purge for a minute and concentrate on the one man who could get the Bears out of their doldrums. What this team needs more than anything else is the 2009 version of Herschel Walker -- a superstar type you could trade to land multiple draft picks that could help build a Super Bowl winner.
That's just what Jimmy Johnson did in 1989 with the largest player swap in NFL history, a deal that included 18 players and draft picks. The centerpiece was Walker; he went to the Minnesota Vikings for a combination of players and picks Dallas used to land Emmitt Smith, Darren Woodson, Russell Maryland and others who helped build a Super Bowl dynasty.
Payne's free, Manning will be a nickel
There's no upside to the Bears' ugly season because they already have surrendered their 2010 first- and second-round draft picks in deals that landed Jay Cutler and Gaines Adams. Sadly, they don't appear to have the kind of top-flight trade bait that would fetch makeup picks in return.
The only player of that caliber on the roster is Cutler himself, but he might be the only untouchable -- along with linebacker Lance Briggs -- on this team.
''It's the NFL, so someone that's here today could be gone tomorrow,'' Briggs said. ''The organization does what they feel is best as far as putting the pieces to the puzzle [together]. I'm pretty sure the guys, this team that we have here will never come again. That's just the way that things work because of contracts, because of opportunities, because of the draft, because of age, because of productivity. Everything comes into account.''
Would Briggs be surprised to become offseason trade bait?
''I would be,'' he said. ''I can't believe you would say that. I don't want to be brought into that discussion. I had my little spat.''
Urlacher contract a roadblock
Speaking of little spats, what about trading middle linebacker Brian Urlacher, who can't seem to buy into the program now that it features the face of Cutler instead of Urlacher's own square-jawed reflection?
Urlacher caused a stir before training camp by allegedly using a nasty term to describe Cutler to then-Vikings receiver Bobby Wade. And this week, he told Yahoo.com sportswriter Michael Silver that he loved Cutler, but didn't like how the identity of the franchise had changed. Urlacher went so far as to praise Kyle Orton as a winner, leaving the insinuation that Cutler was just the opposite.
The Bears aren't shopping Urlacher, mind you. Then again, they can't.
His contract, which has three more seasons at just less than $8 million each, makes it virtually impossible to trade him. And while you might be able to find a team that would take on his deal, you wouldn't find one willing to give up a significant draft pick to do so.
Harris, Hester in similar spots
Urlacher remains a great name, but he hasn't been a great player for a couple of years now. The defense has played poorly with him in the lineup (see last year's finale at Houston), and he has an injury history that now would scare people off. Could the Bears trade him? It's possible, but not realistic.
Teams have restructured deals and granted players permission to renegotiate after announcing trade intentions. But the Bears would be more likely to cut Urlacher than trade him.
If they announce they want to trade a former Pro Bowl player who will be 32 next season, opponents likely would wait to see if he's cut instead of offering anything of substance.
Is the roster so devoid of talent that no one else could bring a significant draft pick? Not exactly. There's always Devin Hester, who once seemed en route to becoming a Hall of Fame return man before being swallowed up in the team's offensive abyss. Hester's contract is more reasonable because it's filled with incentives in case he becomes the No. 1 receiver.
The problem with trading Hester is his value has dropped. It's a bit like trying to trade Tommie Harris. A couple years ago, his value was sky-high. Now he's got injury issues and also some discipline problems that the team made public by suspending him for a game last season.
Hester doesn't have the injury issue, but his performance has slipped dramatically in the return game, and he's not the big-play receiver the Bears projected. There was a time he might have brought a couple first-round picks, but one league source insisted he's now worth only a third-rounder, perhaps a late second-rounder.
The Bears might decide he still can be a playmaker depending on who is calling the plays. Cutler has been asking for more Devin Aromashodu for a couple of weeks now. If he gets him, it probably means Hester isn't going anywhere. But if the Bears start featuring Hester more as a receiver, could that mean they are showcasing him as trade bait?
Mike Mulligan and Sun-Times colleague Brian Hanley host ''The Mully and Hanley Show'' from 5 to 9 a.m. weekdays on WSCR-AM (670).
More on Bears' fade: There's little to trade
Who's worth a first-round pick? Not even once-valuable Hester
December 4, 2009
BY MIKE MULLIGAN mmulligan@suntimes.com
Forget firing coaches or a front-office purge for a minute and concentrate on the one man who could get the Bears out of their doldrums. What this team needs more than anything else is the 2009 version of Herschel Walker -- a superstar type you could trade to land multiple draft picks that could help build a Super Bowl winner.
That's just what Jimmy Johnson did in 1989 with the largest player swap in NFL history, a deal that included 18 players and draft picks. The centerpiece was Walker; he went to the Minnesota Vikings for a combination of players and picks Dallas used to land Emmitt Smith, Darren Woodson, Russell Maryland and others who helped build a Super Bowl dynasty.
Payne's free, Manning will be a nickel
There's no upside to the Bears' ugly season because they already have surrendered their 2010 first- and second-round draft picks in deals that landed Jay Cutler and Gaines Adams. Sadly, they don't appear to have the kind of top-flight trade bait that would fetch makeup picks in return.
The only player of that caliber on the roster is Cutler himself, but he might be the only untouchable -- along with linebacker Lance Briggs -- on this team.
''It's the NFL, so someone that's here today could be gone tomorrow,'' Briggs said. ''The organization does what they feel is best as far as putting the pieces to the puzzle [together]. I'm pretty sure the guys, this team that we have here will never come again. That's just the way that things work because of contracts, because of opportunities, because of the draft, because of age, because of productivity. Everything comes into account.''
Would Briggs be surprised to become offseason trade bait?
''I would be,'' he said. ''I can't believe you would say that. I don't want to be brought into that discussion. I had my little spat.''
Urlacher contract a roadblock
Speaking of little spats, what about trading middle linebacker Brian Urlacher, who can't seem to buy into the program now that it features the face of Cutler instead of Urlacher's own square-jawed reflection?
Urlacher caused a stir before training camp by allegedly using a nasty term to describe Cutler to then-Vikings receiver Bobby Wade. And this week, he told Yahoo.com sportswriter Michael Silver that he loved Cutler, but didn't like how the identity of the franchise had changed. Urlacher went so far as to praise Kyle Orton as a winner, leaving the insinuation that Cutler was just the opposite.
The Bears aren't shopping Urlacher, mind you. Then again, they can't.
His contract, which has three more seasons at just less than $8 million each, makes it virtually impossible to trade him. And while you might be able to find a team that would take on his deal, you wouldn't find one willing to give up a significant draft pick to do so.
Harris, Hester in similar spots
Urlacher remains a great name, but he hasn't been a great player for a couple of years now. The defense has played poorly with him in the lineup (see last year's finale at Houston), and he has an injury history that now would scare people off. Could the Bears trade him? It's possible, but not realistic.
Teams have restructured deals and granted players permission to renegotiate after announcing trade intentions. But the Bears would be more likely to cut Urlacher than trade him.
If they announce they want to trade a former Pro Bowl player who will be 32 next season, opponents likely would wait to see if he's cut instead of offering anything of substance.
Is the roster so devoid of talent that no one else could bring a significant draft pick? Not exactly. There's always Devin Hester, who once seemed en route to becoming a Hall of Fame return man before being swallowed up in the team's offensive abyss. Hester's contract is more reasonable because it's filled with incentives in case he becomes the No. 1 receiver.
The problem with trading Hester is his value has dropped. It's a bit like trying to trade Tommie Harris. A couple years ago, his value was sky-high. Now he's got injury issues and also some discipline problems that the team made public by suspending him for a game last season.
Hester doesn't have the injury issue, but his performance has slipped dramatically in the return game, and he's not the big-play receiver the Bears projected. There was a time he might have brought a couple first-round picks, but one league source insisted he's now worth only a third-rounder, perhaps a late second-rounder.
The Bears might decide he still can be a playmaker depending on who is calling the plays. Cutler has been asking for more Devin Aromashodu for a couple of weeks now. If he gets him, it probably means Hester isn't going anywhere. But if the Bears start featuring Hester more as a receiver, could that mean they are showcasing him as trade bait?
Mike Mulligan and Sun-Times colleague Brian Hanley host ''The Mully and Hanley Show'' from 5 to 9 a.m. weekdays on WSCR-AM (670).