Getty Chicago Bears pass rusher Robert Quinn keeps coming up in trade scenarios with the Kansas City Chiefs.
If there’s one area the Kansas City Chiefs might still add a veteran, it’s the pass rush, and one former All-Pro keeps coming up as a possibility via trade.
NFL insider Jason La Canfora reported that he “continues to hear that [Robert] Quinn wants out of Chicago” on May 20, although the Bears have “told everyone he ain’t going anywhere.” Having said that, La Canfora noted that the likely outcome is still that he’ll be traded and the Chiefs may be the team that’s best positioned to make an offer.
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Bears Ties Could Lead to Quinn Deal
With former KC executive Ryan Poles as the general manager in Chicago, Bleacher Report analyst Kristopher Knox proposed that the Chiefs add Quinn as the missing piece of their defense.
“Quinn was fantastic last season,” he wrote, “tallying 18.5 sacks and 49 tackles. Alongside Frank Clark, Chris Jones and rookie first-round pick George Karlaftis, Quinn could give Kansas City arguably the conference’s top pass rush.”
Continuing: “If Quinn is eager to leave Chicago, the rebuilding Bears would be wise to get something valuable in return and make the move. They already dealt Khalil Mack this offseason, so it’s not as if they’re averse to moving top players.”
Knox’s return was two 2023 draft picks — a second and a fourth — but the larger issue is the 2021 Pro Bowler’s contract. Quinn’s base salary is $12.8 million this season and Poles is looking to shed cap space. If they do trade the pass rusher, they’d probably hope to find a suitor that could take on his financials.
In comes the potential solution. Knox explained:
The Chiefs, who have $11 million in cap space, would have to clear some room to absorb Quinn’s salary. This could be done by signing offensive tackle Orlando Brown Jr. to a contract extension before the July 15 franchise-tag deadline. In this hypothetical deal, Kansas City would get another proven playmaker for its front seven, while Chicago would get future draft chips with which to aid its ongoing rebuild.
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Latest on Brown Extension
If a Brown extension is the key to a major acquisition like Quinn or another playmaker, it would be wise for general manager Brett Veach to get a deal done before the July 15 deadline. Having said that, here’s a refresher on the latest in contract talks.
On June 7, Brown told Mike Garafolo and Shaun O’Hara that he’s “very confident” a long-term extension will be worked out this summer on NFL Total Access. One day later, the offensive tackle’s new agent Michael Portner told The Athletic’s Nate Taylor that he’s “fully prepared for this to come down to the wire,” meaning it could happen just before the deadline.
“If we get a deal in place a week before [the deadline] that’s the right deal,” Portner voiced, “that’s great. But I’m fully prepared for this [five-week] marathon. Even if it’s something that gets done right before the deadline, as long as it’s the right deal, then we’ll be happy.”
Head coach Andy Reid then noted that Veach and “his crew” were doing “a whole lot of conversing with him,” adding that “these things don’t ever happen overnight.”
Finally, Patrick Mahomes echoed that he was “very confident” that the extension would occur.
He stated: “I was with him yesterday, actually. So I hang out with him a lot. He loves football. He loves the Kansas City Chiefs. He loves being here in this organization. So now it’s just kind of the stuff that’s always tough is the business side of this. All of us want to provide for our families in the long term and next generations. So I know he’s trying to get that all handled. But as far as loving the Chiefs and loving football, there’s not another person in this building that loves it as much as he does.”
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Chiefs Extension Could Free up Space for Pro Bowl Pass Rusher, Says Analyst