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The Chicago Bears already have an enviable trio of running backs ready to flank QB Justin Fields this season, but when opportunity knocks, the ambitious have the sense enough at least to listen.
After a prolonged public skirmish with the Indianapolis Colts over a contract extension this offseason, 2021 NFL rushing champion Jonathan Taylor has finally accomplished his goal of reaching the trade block.
“Colts have given All-Pro RB Jonathan Taylor permission to seek a trade, per league sources,” ESPN’s Adam Schefter tweeted on Monday, August 21. “Other teams now are weighing whether to make an offer to the Colts and what would be fair value.”
Indy is looking for a first-round pick in return for Taylor, according to Stephen Holder of ESPN. If the Colts can’t secure a first-rounder outright, Holder reported the team wants a bundle of draft assets that equate to a first-rounder.
Chicago owns its own first-round pick in 2024, as well as that of the Carolina Panthers. Both of those selections have the potential to be too high to ship out for a running back of any sort, even one as young (24 years old) and as talented as Taylor. However, Chicago also owns the rights to its own second- and third-round picks next April along with two fourth-round choices, per NBC Sports.
The Bears have the flexibility to package a couple of non-first-round picks, and potentially include 2023 free agent acquisition D’Onta Foreman, to make a run at Taylor if they so choose.
Jonathan Taylor Will Prove Expensive Upgrade for Bears Should Team Pursue Him
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GettyIndianapolis Colts running back Jonathan Taylor has been granted permission to seek a trade.
Chicago was floated as a potential landing spot for New York Giants running back Saquon Barkley this summer after four-year starter David Montgomery bolted for the Detroit Lions in free agency.
Barkley landed back in the Big Apple and the Bears decided to approach the position in a very different way. The team signed Foreman to a one-year, $2 million contract then used a fourth-round pick to draft RB Roschon Johnson out of the University of Texas. The two joined two-year backup rusher Khalil Herbert who was exceptional last season in a limited role behind Montgomery.
The Bears are in a great spot in the offensive backfield already, with young and explosive talent on cheap deals. Spotrac projects Taylor’s market value at $13 million annually, which is more than three-times what Chicago is paying the trio of Herbert, Foreman and Johnson in 2023.
Addition of Jonathan Taylor Will Elevate Bears’ Rushing Attack to Top of NFL
GettyRunning back Jonathan Taylor of the Indianapolis Colts warms up before an NFL game against the Las Vegas Raiders in November 2022.
That said, the Bears also have a significant amount of salary cap space ($16.3 million as of Monday) and flexibility moving forward. The front office has upgraded Fields’ pass-catching arsenal this offseason by trading for wide receiver D.J. Moore and signing tight end Robert Tonyan. More investment has also come down for the offensive line.
The prospect of adding an All-Pro caliber running back was intriguing enough for a Bears offense to get the rumor mill rolling this offseason around Barkley. That prospect remains enticing, as Fields finished last season with the second-best rushing performance of any QB in NFL history.
A duo of Fields and Taylor would render Chicago’s rushing attack perhaps the most formidable in the league, assuming the relative health and success of the offensive line. Taylor led the NFL in rushing with 1,811 yards and 18 touchdowns in 2021. He also caught 40 passes for 360 yards and two scores that season. Taylor and Fields are also essentially the same age and their career timelines align nicely.
Foreman has considerable value on a cheap contract coming off of a career year in Carolina. Sending him to Indy along with a 2024 second-round pick and one of Chicago’s fourth-rounders is a deal worth considering for a Bears team that is in the second year of a rebuild, though still has a legitimate chance to compete in the NFC North Division this year.
For context, the Panthers traded running back Christian McCaffrey to the San Francisco 49ers at last year’s trade deadline for a 2023 second-rounder, 2023 third-rounder, 2023 fourth-rounder and 2024 fifth-rounder. McCaffrey and Taylor are similar talents, though Taylor is three years younger.
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