At this point, it’s something that feels like it happened a year ago instead of just two months. Many people have already forgotten the briefest of moments that the Chicago Bears made a hard push to trade for quarterback Russell Wilson. The Seattle Seahawks star seemed disgruntled with his team. Enough to where he even provided a list of destinations he’d welcome a trade to. A list the Bears were on. One can only imagine the reaction head coach Matt Nagy and GM Ryan Pace had when hearing that.
For the first time all offseason, somebody managed to ask Nagy about this. The Bears head coach called into The Rich Eisen Show to talk about his team’s offseason. Most of the conversations centered on new addition Justin Fields. What the plans are for him moving forward. What the team liked about him. During the conversation, Eisen decided to broach the subject about Wilson. Just how close were the Bears to making it happen?
So the Bears did indeed make a run at him.
At the end of the day, Seattle just wasn’t willing to make the deal. This isn’t a huge surprise. Trading a Hall of Fame quarterback who is still in his prime isn’t easy. Even if he’s disgruntled. The Seahawks had a choice. Deal him for a big package and start over or try to make it work. They chose the latter. GM John Schneider spent the offseason doing his best to make his QB happy, adding a number of new faces to the offense. Especially the offensive line.
By the sound of things, Wilson has settled down. Reports were the Bears made a strong offer including three 1st round picks, two 3rd round picks, and two veteran players. Seattle couldn’t bring themselves to do it. Once that became apparent, Chicago had to shift gears. They signed Andy Dalton as insurance for 2021, then began preparations for the NFL draft. Everybody remembers what happened next.
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Matt Nagy seems perfectly happy with the end result
Would landing Wilson have been an exciting thing for Chicago? Of course. The guy is one of the five best quarterbacks in the NFL. His presence would’ve immediately made the Bears favorites in the NFC North after hearing the Aaron Rodgers news up in Green Bay. However, one could argue not landing him was best for the franchise. At least from a long-term perspective.
The price they would’ve had to pay was astronomical. It’s hard to build a good football team without the benefit of high draft picks. Chicago would have gone three straight years without a 1st rounder. This after going the two previous years without one due to the Khalil Mack trade. Getting Wilson would’ve been one thing. Building a strong enough roster around him would’ve been a difficult challenge. Especially given his age of 33.
Perhaps Seattle saying no could become a blessing in disguise.
It enabled the Bears to avoid mortgaging their future while still getting a quarterback to be excited about in Fields. Matt Nagy knows the responsibility sits on his shoulders. It’s his job to turn the 11th overall pick into what he’s capable of being. A star. That requires good coaching and a good structure. Nagy saw the blueprint in Kansas City with Patrick Mahomes. His job is to do the same.