Championship Sunday ought to supply compelling soccer, with MVP favourite Patrick Mahomes going head-to-head in opposition to the Cincinnati Bengals’ Joe Burrow within the AFC in Kansas City, Mo., and the Philadelphia Eagles enjoying host to the San Francisco 49ers in a battle of the highest NFC seeds.
At the tip of the day, the stage might be set for Super Bowl LVII on Feb. 12 in Glendale, Ariz., and the NFL might be one step nearer to an offseason during which the Chicago Bears are positioned to make a flurry of headlines coming off a 3-14 season and the hiring of President/CEO Kevin Warren.
The Bears personal the No. 1 choose within the draft, which can present months of hypothesis about whether or not a trade-down deal is within the works for basic supervisor Ryan Poles. They additionally possess the biggest quantity of salary-cap house out there in free company, which begins at 3 p.m. March 15.
Five former Bears on Sunday might be vying for a visit to the Super Bowl: Safety Deon Bush and fullback Michael Burton are on the Chiefs, defensive finish Robert Quinn is with the Eagles and kicker Robbie Gould and security Tashaun Gipson are on the 49ers. Gould is one win from enjoying in his third Super Bowl in his 18th season.
Here are six offseason storylines to observe.
1. Veteran quarterback motion is not going to contain the Bears straight.
But it doubtlessly will scale back the variety of groups that could possibly be thinking about buying and selling for the No. 1 choose, and it might have a profound impact on the way forward for the NFC North.
Less than 11 months after signing a three-year, $150.815 million extension with the Green Bay Packers, Aaron Rodgers’ future stays up within the air. Retirement appears extremely unlikely — Rodgers can be strolling away from greater than $59 million — however a commerce has been reported as a risk.
The Packers would virtually actually wish to transfer Rodgers to an AFC workforce as they as soon as did with Brett Favre. The New York Jets — the workforce that traded for Favre — have been closely talked about as a risk. The prospect of Rodgers leaving the NFC North would have huge ramifications. The Bears have been ready for many years for the Packers to expertise what it’s prefer to be and not using a franchise quarterback. Rodgers has a 25-5 report, together with postseason, within the rivalry in 18 seasons in Green Bay.
Derek Carr of the Las Vegas Raiders is anticipated to land elsewhere, and two NFC playoff groups have quarterbacks popping out of contract — the New York Giants’ Daniel Jones and Seattle Seahawks’ Geno Smith. The Baltimore Ravens appear motivated to make issues proper with quarterback Lamar Jackson, the 2019 MVP, however there are extra questions on their future collectively than there have been earlier than the season.
2. Free company chatter begins on the Senior Bowl, which will get going Monday.
Mix prime executives from almost all 32 groups with brokers for high-profile gamers in Mobile, Ala., for a number of days and exploratory conversations will be the impetus to offers being achieved six weeks later. It’s tampering however the type of factor that occurs yearly when groups and brokers can declare they’re discussing something however what lies forward in free company.
3. It can be shocking if the Bears have been to make use of a franchise or transition tag on any gamers.
The window for these designations runs from Feb. 21-March 7 and might be vital to look at.
Teams can stop gamers who doubtlessly can be enticing free brokers from reaching the open market. Defensive linemen Daron Payne (Washington Commanders) and Dre’Mont Jones (Denver Broncos), offensive tackles Orlando Brown (Kansas City Chiefs) and Kaleb McGary (Atlanta Falcons) and operating backs Josh Jacobs (Las Vegas Raiders) and Saquon Barkley (New York Giants) are non-quarterbacks to regulate.
4. Chatter — some practical and thought-provoking, some downright goofy — about the potential for buying and selling the No. 1 choose will virtually certainly drag on for greater than two months.
This isn’t the type of deal that’s more likely to occur when Poles is on the clock April 27, but it surely’s troublesome to think about something falling into place greater than a month earlier than the draft. The San Francisco 49ers traded as much as No. 3 for a choose that was quarterback Trey Lance on March 26, 2021. In 2016, the top-two picks have been traded: The Los Angeles Rams moved up from No. 15 to No. 1 to pick Jared Goff on April 14 — two weeks earlier than the draft. Six days later, the Eagles moved up from No. 8 to No. 2 to be in place to draft Carson Wentz.
If you’re of the thoughts that Poles is not going to wish to transfer down too far in Round 1 if he offers the choose, the Bears are going to hope groups choosing within the prime 10 don’t land veteran quarterbacks. The Houston Texans (No. 2) and Indianapolis Colts (No. 4) are imagined to be out there for a rookie passer. A wild card is the Atlanta Falcons, choosing No. 3. If they actually like one or two prospects, might they hearth on a quarterback a 12 months after selecting Desmond Ridder within the third spherical?
The Bears have two motivating components to contemplate buying and selling down. Although they personal the highest choose, that’s their solely choice within the prime 50 as a result of the second-rounder they acquired from the Ravens within the Roquan Smith commerce is No. 54. They personal solely three picks within the prime 100, the third being No. 65 on the prime of Round 3. As intriguing can be the possibility so as to add a first-round choose in 2024, particularly if it comes from a franchise that would wrestle considerably within the season forward.
5. Recruiting goes to be an enormous a part of free company as a result of the Bears are hardly the one workforce with a boatload of cap house and a laundry record of wants.
Money speaks loudest, however there might be intense competitors for high-caliber gamers. That is the place Poles’ professional division and the connection these individuals have with brokers might be key. It’s the place the teaching workers must promote the membership’s imaginative and prescient. Plenty of parts are in play that transcend waving across the McCaskey checkbook and shopping for gamers.
6. Buffalo Bills GM Brandon Beane made headlines Tuesday.
At his end-of-season media session, Beane mentioned he doesn’t need the Bills to “suck bad enough to have to get a Ja’Marr Chase.” The remark, with out context, generated headlines, however the level was Beane’s workforce is constructed in a different way with quarterback Josh Allen and broad receiver Stefon Diggs enjoying on high-end second contracts. The Bengals profit from having quarterback Joe Burrow and Chase, their No. 1 receiver, on rookie contracts, giving them much more roster flexibility.
“(Chase) is a heck of a talent — I’d love to have him — but you’ve got to go through some lean years to do that,” Beane mentioned. “And you know, they were able to get (Burrow) one, and I don’t remember where Chase was drafted but it was pretty high. … (The Bengals) have a really good team, and they’ve got some good young players. We’re going to try to get as many good players as we can through the draft and through free agency, but again, our cap situation’s a little different by whoever’s under the book.”
Dallas Cowboys linebacker Micah Parsons piggybacked Beane’s comment on Chase and identified the Chiefs are the one workforce enjoying Sunday with a quarterback not on a rookie contract.
That created blowback for Parsons as some insinuated it to be a shot at Cowboys quarterback Dak Prescott, who struggled within the divisional-round loss to the 49ers Sunday in San Francisco. That led Parsons to clarify he wasn’t relating the Cowboys’ cap construction with Prescott to what he mentioned.
The Bears are within the midst of “lean years,” to borrow from Beane, and what they do that offseason will form a path to greener pastures. Certainly having success with quarterback Justin Fields on his rookie deal — he might be coming into Year 3 of a five-year contract — can be best. But let’s not fake as if having an elite quarterback on a mega contract is an issue.
Any workforce and not using a franchise quarterback would gladly welcome Allen and ever penny of his contract, and no workforce would hesitate to pay Burrow what the Bengals must as a way to lock him up for seasons to return.
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Source: www.bostonherald.com
