The Chicago Bears have a somewhat murky reputation when it comes to meeting with players on various business subjects be they contract extension, draft interviews, or free agent meetings. Suffice to say not everybody comes away happy with speaking to them like others. One prime example of this is none other than Greg Olsen. The former 1st round pick of Chicago in 2007 who was traded away in 2011.
After putting together a stellar career in Carolina, Olsen was released last offseason. The Panthers were in the midst of a rebuild and shedding salary. The 35-year old knew his career was close to reaching its end. He just wanted one more shot to see if he could put together a season he could be proud of. Maybe even finally get that elusive Super Bowl ring. He was aware the Bears needed tight end help and grew excited when the team called.
It didn’t go as he’d hoped.
Olsen appeared on Pardon My Take to discuss all sorts of subjects including an update on the health of his son who’s been fighting a heart condition. Towards the end of the interview, he felt compelled to tell a Bears story that nobody knows about. Not the one regarding his hatred of Mike Martz and Jerry Angelo running him out of town 10 years ago. This has to do with the encounter he had with the Bears’ current top brass.
“Last year, I got cut. I was going into free agency after the Panthers cut me and was talking to a bunch of different teams, trying to figure out what the opportunities were. I talked to Matt Nagy. He called me with the GM (Ryan Pace) and we talked for like 45 minutes. They’re asking me questions about routes and what kind of systems had you played in? Would you be comfortable with codewords vs. digits? What did you do on your backside routes? Your leverage reads? All this stuff.
So I said to my wife, ‘I think they really like me and want to sign me. How cool would it be if life came full circle and we could finish up my career back in Chicago?’ So I got myself all excited. Long story short, they were like we don’t have enough money, we don’t have this. So I got and sign in Seattle. Day 1 of f**king free agency, they signed Jimmy Graham. I said, ‘What the f**k?’ They paid him more than I wanted!
It was like they used me. It was like they took me on a really cheap date, picked my brain for everything I knew, and just like gave me an Uber.”
Ouch. Not exactly the best treatment.
In truth, the Bears likely used the money thing as an excuse. They didn’t want to hurt Olsen’s feelings by saying the actual reason. They probably felt he wouldn’t be able to hold up for a full season health-wise. Something he hadn’t done since back in 2016. As it turns out, they were right. The tight end made it just 11 games through 2020 before tearing his plantar fascia, ending his season and ultimately his career. So while handling the situation could’ve been better, it was still the right call.
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Greg Olsen was a victim of Bears’ search for durability
Remember the team had been burned by tight end injuries for years. Trey Burton missed multiple games in both 2018 and 2019. The same went for Zach Miller from 2015 through 2017. Chicago desperately needed somebody they could rely on to actually stay on the field more than anything. That is why they were willing to pay more for Graham. The 34-year old hasn’t missed a game since 2015 and only seven in his entire career.
Greg Olsen is well within his right to feel jilted. That was a poor display of class by the Bears to not keep it straight with him. In truth though, the money thing isn’t entirely without cause. Remember he signed a one-year deal for $7 million to play in Seattle. Graham signed a two-year deal for $16 million. So while he did get more, it wasn’t a lot more. The truth is the Bears felt he wasn’t worth his asking price.
They were correct. Olsen had less than 300 yards receiving and just one touchdown in 2020. Graham had nine touchdowns. The decision was the correct one. Hopefully, they’ll learn to do a better job of telling players they’re going to pass.
