Instant Analysis: Keenan Allen to the Bears |
Finally, the bold move Bears fans have been waiting for. After making several small free agent signings since Monday, Chicago has landed a highly talented receiver, getting former Chargers receiver Keenan Allen. All this cost the Bears was a fourth-round pick, No. 110 overall.
Keenan Allen has been elected to the Pro Bowl six of the last seven seasons, including last season when he had 1,243 receiving yards, his highest since 2017. He recorded seven touchdowns, making his seventh consecutive season with at least four touchdown receptions. Allen has been a consistent playmaker for several years but started to come into his prime in 2017 when he won Comeback Player of the Year. Last season was arguably his best. After the Los Angeles Chargers paid receiver Mike Williams over $20 million, he tore his ACL early in the season, making Allen the clear No. 1 on the Chargers’ roster. Despite the constant attention he received, he still managed to put up incredible numbers. Now with him in Chicago, the Bears have a strong dynamic duo in receiver DJ Moore and Allen, both of whom had over 1,200 receiving yards last season. Tight end Cole Kmet also had a strong season. The Bears also acquired tight end Gerald Everett in free agency, further boosting the pass-catching talent on their roster. No matter who is the quarterback for Chicago next season whether it be Justin Fields or a rookie, they will have a strong receiving group. Part of why Los Angeles traded Allen was their cap hit. They released Williams to get under the salary cap by the deadline, but still needed to clear some room to be able to sign players from the NFL Draft. They are taking on $11,617,500 in dead cap. The rest of Allen’s cap hit, $23,100,000, is set to go against the Bears; however, this is subject to change as the trade just occurred. Even if that $23.1 million cap hit for Allen stands, that leaves Chicago with a lot of space. Prior to the Allen trade, they had $57,185,488 room in cap space according to Spotrac. Allen’s hit would still leave over $34 million for Chicago to spend on additional free-agent signings and draft picks. This trade would also seem to indicate the Bears’ draft plans. Many mock drafts had them selecting a receiver with the No. 9 overall pick; some also had them trading down from No. 9, such as with the Denver Broncos, and still acquiring a wide receiver. Most commonly, this was projected to be Rome Odunze out of Washington. While a No. 3 receiver is certainly important, it would not make sense for the Bears to spend their No. 9 pick on a receiver. With this trade, it would thus appear more likely this pick could be spent on defense, such as edge rusher Jared Verse from Florida State, or a left tackle, such as Joe Alt from Notre Dame or Olumuyima Fashanu from Penn State. One aspect this trade does not give an indication of is whether or not Chicago will stick with Fields. Any quarterback is now set up for success with the combination of Moore, Allen and Kmet. However, the quarterback market has severely shrunk with many teams already filling their quarterback voids for the upcoming season or making moves that imply an intention to bring in a rookie by adding a veteran presence. Chicago still has the No. 1 overall pick in the draft. Until they trade Fields or make some kind of statement regarding Fields, the speculation around him will continue. However, this acquisition for Allen certainly would help Fields develop if they decide to keep him.
