The message was evident when the Chicago Bears traded Robert Quinn this past week. GM Ryan Poles is focused on building for the future. That means acquiring draft picks and clearing up salary cap space. It seems highly unlikely the man would turn around and seek to acquire a player for his team. Yet such things can often be dictated by circumstances. Poles might feel compelled to move if the right player were available at the right price.
Kevin Patra of NFL.com thinks one such scenario could be on the table. The Denver Broncos are floundering at 2-5. Kansas City and Los Angeles are already far ahead in the division. Any hopes of a playoff push are already dead. It is why speculation is rampant team management may look to unload several players for draft picks. One name that has lots of steam is Albert Okwuegbunam. The former 4th round pick showed considerable progress in 2021 with 330 yards and two touchdowns on 40 targets. Yet he hasn’t been utilized much under new head coach Nathaniel Hackett.
Chicago might be an ideal landing spot for him.
“I know the Bears are being labeled as “sellers” after trading away Robert Quinn, but there’s still a huge need to invest in weapons for Justin Fields. Why not make a deadline move to land a talented player like Albert O, who is buried on the depth chart in Denver? In previous seasons, the former fourth-round pick flashed some playmaking skills and the ability to generate separation, traits the Bears need in their pass-catching corps.
Given that he’s been a healthy inactive the past two weeks, the 24-year-old shouldn’t cost much to pry away from Denver. Still on his rookie contract, Okwuegbunam is the type of cheap flier Chicago should chase at the deadline to help Fields in his development and complement Cole Kmet, who has impressed offensive coordinator Luke Getsy. Worst-case scenario for the Bears: Ryan Poles doesn’t chase him, and the TE ends up with rival Green Bay.”
Albert Okwuegbunam is 260 pounds and moving like this pic.twitter.com/NTX7hsqA9w
— Nate Tice (@Nate_Tice) June 17, 2022
The #Broncos are receiving calls about their TEs with Albert Okwuegbunam drawing the most interest, per ESPN.
The freakish 6'5, 258 pound target was a healthy inactive against the #Chargers on Monday but he's still only 24-years old with 4.49 wheels.pic.twitter.com/8fads9xnVW
— Dov Kleiman (@NFL_DovKleiman) October 19, 2022
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The Chicago Bears should at least explore this idea.
Okwuegbunam is a physical specimen with 6’5 size and 4.4 speed. He presents a far greater matchup problem in the passing game than Cole Kmet does. Unlike Russell Wilson, Bears quarterback Justin Fields does a good job keeping the tight ends involved in the passing game. Kmet is the third-most targeted player this season for Chicago. Offensive coordinator Luke Getsy might find all sorts of ways to get Okwuegbunam involved. He could threaten defenses up the seam far more than Kmet could.
Right now, the Chicago Bears have six picks in the first five rounds of the draft. Poles has shown an ability to create lots more via trade downs. So giving up a 5th rounder for Okwuegbunam wouldn’t be a terrible gamble. The kid has one more year on his rookie contract. If he excels, the team can easily sign him long-term. If not, it won’t be a massive loss in the grand scheme. Much of this depends on how big the market is for the young tight end.
