So Roquan Smith for Chase Claypool and a 5th round pick? Actually, it’s a little worse than that, since we traded OUR 2nd round pick instead of the one acquired from Baltimore. If you put it that way, I don’t feel good. However, I’m going to treat this acquisition of Chase Claypool as a separate animal. In that case, I love this move.
It’s no secret the Bears need WR help. Is Claypool THE guy? I wouldn’t say that. Is he worth a 2nd round pick? Maybe… maybe not. He is someone that is better than what we have. If we slot Claypool into our WR2 and move Mooney to WR3, we still need a WR1, but… we’re better off on the offensive side of the ball today than we were yesterday, and that’s a good thing. I am 100% supportive of the idea to build around Fields; provide him an offensive line that can block, WRs that can catch, and a couple good RBs. I’m all for it. I guess my only concern is how do we balance that with our defense?
You see, with all the cap space the Bears have, I don’t understand why we couldn’t have done both, meaning, keep Roquan AND build around Fields. They say the LB position is not critical… OK. Yes, I understand we need CBs and pass rushers; I think winning the battle in the trenches on both sides of the ball is very important. So we’ll just run anybody out there at LB and be OK? I don’t know… With a current roster that has many needs to be addressed, why subtract from one position that is a strength? Why, with all that money, can’t the Bears be smart enough, via the draft and free agency, to build a strong offense AND defense? What a novel concept… see this year’s Buffalo Bills.
I get these things don’t happen overnight. I’ve preached patience with this new regime; we have to give them time to build the team they want, the way they want, with us fans patiently waiting for that Super Bowl champion. If trading Roquan is going to get us closer to that goal, even if I don’t see it, then so be it. I’m under the assumption that building a Super Bowl champ is their goal, and everything that is done is working towards that. It will take years to figure out if this was a good move or not. It still is not sitting right with me…
But, the Claypool move cheers me up a bit. One thing is certain; this new regime is not bashful… the water is warm, jump on in! I think this is a GOOD thing, even if I don’t agree with every move. Have a plan, stick to the plan, and build a winning football team; we deserve it, no doubt. It’s been what… 36 years? And yes, I know with all these great LBs over the years, how many Super Bowls did that equate to… only one. Yet, that one… our offense was pretty good too, including the greatest football player of all time and a pretty damn good QB. So… point is, we need both offense and defense; we need balance. We need talent; subtracting a talent like Roquan seems counterintuitive. Adding talent like Claypool makes sense. Building up draft picks & cap space is very good too. Much more to come… what will all of this mean this year, including our next game against the Dolphins? Stay tuned. Bear Down.
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