The Chicago Bears have a good thing going so far this season. At 4-1 they’re one of the best teams in the NFC and hope to improve that record against the Carolina Panthers. However, a lot of people can’t help but feel nervous about this team’s future. They have some tough financial decisions coming up in 2021. By far the biggest being the fate of their star wide receiver Allen Robinson.
There is no doubt the 27-year old is the best thing going on the Bears offense and it’s not even close. At 421 yards through five games, he’s on pace for 1,324 this season. That would rank as one of the best in team history. So it isn’t hard to understand why fans and even teammates have spoken out constantly about getting him a contract extension.
Robinson himself showed his frustration with the lack of progress a few weeks ago. He deleted all Bears mentions on his social media and was rumored to have even inquired about a trade. Those quickly died down but ever since then there haven’t been any signs of progress on that elusive new deal.
It looks like there isn’t going to be any too.
The wide receiver took some time to appear on the ESPN program “Keyshawn, JWill & Zubin” to talk about himself and the Bears. When host Zubin Mehenti brought up his contract situation, Robinson made a rather eye-opening reply.
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“I put that behind me as far as the contract and everything like that. My main focus is playing well. At the end of the day, I know my biggest asset is playing well. So that’s what I’m focused on. Playing well and trying to lead this team to win games.”
Allen Robinson seems content on driving up his price
It would appear Robinson has figured out the real solution to his problem. Complaining about the contract wasn’t getting him anywhere. So rather than beat his head against that wall, he’s decided to take a different approach. By playing even better than he did last year. The stats speak to that so far.
Reports were the receiver wanted something around Odell Beckham Jr. money at $18 million per year. The Bears were hoping to keep it closer to $16 million. That likely jumped to $17 million after Robert Woods received his own extension from the Los Angeles Rams. Clearly, that has not satisfied Robinson.
The best (or worst) part is this.
GM Ryan Pace may likely wish he’d accepted the $18 million per year price tag by the end of this season. If Robinson finishes at his current pace, he’ll likely be in a position to demand even more money than he was. Perhaps in the $20 million per year range. Remember he is still squarely in his physical prime and teams will pay through the nose for a receiver they know is good for 1,000 yards every year.
Especially one who can do it with suspect quarterback play. Unless the Bears up their offer in the near future, which doesn’t seem likely, the outcome of this scenario becomes fairly easy to predict.
Barring an extension, Chicago is guaranteed to slap Allen Robinson with the franchise tag next offseason. Something the wide receiver has made clear on more than one occasion he isn’t wild about. Could that lead to a holdout and maybe even an outright trade demand? Anything is possible. Hopefully, the Bears come to their senses and work harder to avoid it.