National pundits would like people to think that Carson Wentz is the primary target for the Chicago Bears in their quarterback chase. Yet little about that makes any sense. Little of that information has come from those close to the Bears. Wentz is surrounded by a lot of red flags, carries a bloated contract, and is rumored to not even want to come here. Not to mention GM Ryan Pace never (and we mean never) shows his hand when QBs are involved. This is where the Derek Carr scenario comes into play.
The Bears have hardly been mentioned as a team involved on the Las Vegas Raiders QB. This despite him coming off his best season and having two highly affordable years left on his contract. Not to mention zero of the character concerns. He’d make way more sense from the Bears’ perspective, right?
That is why it should be taken seriously.
This past week, Jeff Hughes of Da Bears Blog dropped a mini bombshell when he stated Chicago not only wants Carr, but the Raiders have at least been open to discussing it.
Bears want Carr. And the Raiders have at least discussed it. https://t.co/wC0gnBhB2R
— DaBearsBlog (@dabearsblog) February 8, 2021
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Hughes has delivered credible information on the Bears for years. He’s been first on a number of their coaching hires including both Harry Hiestand and Juan Castillo. So he doesn’t put stuff like this out unless he’s pretty confident it’s true. On Saturday, he reinforced his stance.
Bears still zeroed in on Derek Carr.
— DaBearsBlog (@dabearsblog) February 13, 2021
This hasn’t changed in over a week, but they won’t look to the other options til they’ve exhausted Carr. https://t.co/yhE9h5HG7r
— DaBearsBlog (@dabearsblog) February 13, 2021
The rumors surrounding Carr and a trade date back to the start of 2020. Jon Gruden has a longstanding reputation of impatience at the quarterback position. It’s felt the head coach is always looking at the next guy. Vincent Bonsignore of the Las Vegas Review-Journal revealed last week the team would be open to moving Carr with the initial goal of using the return they get for a push to trade for Deshaun Watson.
With Watson being held hostage for the timing being by Houston, the Carr buzz quickly died away. That hasn’t stopped teams from continuing to call the Raiders about him.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xYgrVz_Dj6c&t=1s&ab_channel=SportsProductions
Derek Carr makes more sense than any QB out there
Set aside the obvious talent, high character, and other traits he brings. The big selling point is the contract. Two years remain on his deal with $22.12 and $19.87 million each of those years. By starting quarterback standards? That is chump change. Especially since no guarantees are owed to him anymore. Everything about him seems ideal.
He’s a quality veteran still in his prime. He boasts a team-friendly contract and he’s also somebody head coach Matt Nagy knows quite well. He saw Derek Carr twice a year for four seasons when he was with the Kansas City Chiefs. So this would be anything but a blind jump. The obvious obstacle is the pricetag. Two 1st round picks appear to be the ballpark, which is a lot. The Bears haven’t made a 1st round pick since 2018. Continuing to trade them away for veteran players is a dangerous proposition.
At the same time, is he worth it?
Depends on who you ask. What is known for sure is Carr has thrown 48 touchdowns to 17 interceptions the past two years with a 101.1 quarterback rating. He’s a three-time Pro Bowler and was an MVP candidate in 2016 before breaking his leg. The guy can play. The Raiders seem willing to let him go at the right price. Pace and Nagy could be just desperate enough to pay it.