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The Chicago Bears sent a fourth-round draft pick to the Los Angeles Chargers in exchange for 6-time Pro Bowl wide receiver Keenan Allen in March of 2024.
The hope was for Allen to become a reliable crutch of sorts for rookie quarterback Caleb Williams. So far, through four weeks, that hasn’t come close to happening. Allen has missed two games with a nagging heel injury, and in the two games he has played in, he has 7 catches on 14 targets for 48 yards (6.9 yards per catch).
Meanwhile, over in Kansas City, the Chiefs are sitting at 4-0, but they just lost playmaking wide receiver Rashee Rice indefinitely. Kansas City is also without another top wideout, Marquise “Hollywood” Brown, and QB Patrick Mahomes‘ lack of receivers has some wondering if the Bears might be a possible trade partner.
NFL Network analyst and insider Peter Schrager named four wideouts he thinks Kansas City general manager Brett Veach could make trade inquiries about: Amari Cooper of the Cleveland Browns, Jalin Hyatt of the New York Giants, Cooper Kupp of the Los Angeles Rams — and Allen.
Would the Chicago Bears Be Willing to Trade WR Keenan Allen to the Chiefs?
While Allen’s first season with Chicago has been a disappointment thus far, the Bears added him for a reason. With his injury, he hasn’t yet had time to become that go-to WR for Williams. That should happen with time.
Sure, Bears general manager Ryan Poles has strong ties to Kansas City after having served as an executive with the Chiefs from 2016 until 2021. There’s certainly a chance Veach and Poles could find common ground if a trade benefitted them both.
Schrager is a very connected NFL insider — he wouldn’t mention Allen’s name unless he thought it was a possibility. Still, this feels like a long shot.
The 32-year-old Allen is in the final year of his contract and has a current cap hit of $23.1 million. The idea of finishing his career with a contender like the Chiefs would surely appeal to him, but Kansas City would have to be willing to take on his cap hit, and the Chiefs might also have to be willing to negotiate a future deal with the aging vet.
Considering the other options out there, Allen is probably staying put in Chicago.
Allen Still Has Plenty of Time to Make an Impact on Bears’ Offense
Allen has been dealing with plantar fasciitis, which he says has been brewing since training camp. He played Week 1, but he missed Weeks 2 and 3 to rest his heel. He returned Week 4 and caught 3 passes on 3 targets for 19 yards. For his part, Allen says he’s doing much better.
“I’d rather it happen now than the end of the season,” the veteran WR said about his heel issue, via the Chicago Tribune. “That was the main thing of resting an extra week just making sure we put this beside us and be able to be healthy for the rest of the season.”
Allen should be on the field Week 5 for Chicago’s home game against the Carolina Panthers. Hopefully, he can start to develop that on-field chemistry with his rookie QB.
“To have a guy obviously as we know, Keenan Allen back, it’s going to be great for our offense,” Williams said about Allen, per the Tribune. “It’s just something else that the defense has to worry about throughout this week and then obviously on game day. And so it’s going to be great for us. His special talent of getting open in a phone booth is going to be great for us.”
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