Proposed Kendrick Bourne Trade Has Patriots Landing ‘Dangerous’ Playmaker

The New England Patriots might need to look into trading WR Kendrick Bourne. After struggling to gain more snaps through the first four games of the season, Bourne’s name was called most often during the team’s 29-0 win over the Detroit Lions in Week 5 because of mistakes.

Specifically, two potentially costly penalties from Bourne put the Patriots in a tough spot that they were able to overcome thanks to an otherwise strong team effort.

Bourne’s name has been a part of trade speculation for the past two months, but after Sunday’s performance (which saw him record one reception for a single yard and a rushing attempt for minus-1 yard), The Boston Sports Journal’s Greg Bedard placed Bourne on his “Four Down” list.

For those unaware, that’s a list of players who didn’t perform well in the last Patriots game. Bourne was joined by the struggling Nelson Agholor, Isaiah Wynn, and Lil’Jordan Humphrey.

Justin Melo of The Draft Network is calling for the Patriots to deal Bourne.

“Bourne is in year two of a three-year, $15 million contract signed last offseason,” Melo wrote. “Bourne is signed through 2023 while carrying a reasonable cap hit of $4.750 million via Spotrac. Receiver-needy teams should consider acquiring Bourne at his current price. Bourne isn’t a part of New England’s offensive game plans on a weekly basis. The Patriots must begin thinking about next season.”

Melo suggested three potential landing spots for Bourne if the Patriots elected to trade him. The Las Vegas Raiders, New York Giants, and Chicago Bears were mentioned, but a specific trade wasn’t outlined. We’ll do that here for a potential trade to the Bears.

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Another Patriots-Bears Proposed Trade

• Bears Would Get: WR Kendrick Bourne and a 2024 7th-round pick
• Patriots Would Get: RB Trestan Ebner and a 2023 5th-round pick

The Patriots have already dealt one wide receiver to the Bears this year. New England shipped former first-round pick and massive disappointment N’Keal Harry to the Windy City in exchange for a seventh-round pick before the start of the season.

Harry got hurt in training camp, landed on injured reserve, and hasn’t played a down in the regular season for the Bears as of yet. However, there is a chance he could be activated soon. In fact, Harry might actually make his season debut against the Patriots in Week 7, but we’ll see how that goes.

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How Bourne Fits in Chicago and Ebner in New England

Despite the deal to add Harry and the team’s pickup of Ihmir Smith-Marsette, the Bears still need help at wide receiver. Landing Bourne would give young quarterback Justin Fields a second dependable option at wide receiver to go with Darnell Mooney. Because Bourne doesn’t carry a huge cap hit and is only on the books for another season, taking on his salary won’t cramp what figures to be some big-time offseason spending from the Bears during the spring.

Trestan Ebner is the third running back on the Bears’ depth chart behind David Montgomery and Khalil Herbert, and he has been the team’s primary kickoff returner. Ebner’s versatility has always been his calling card. The 23-year-old running back posted a 4.43 40-yard dash speed while a teammate at Baylor with Patriots WR Tyquan Thornton.

NFL.com’s Lance Zierlein called Ebner a “Swiss-Army Knife” because of his ability to function as a wide receiver, running back, or special-teams contributor. He also called him a “dangerous” potential mismatch weapon in the passing game against linebackers. Overall, Ebner’s profile fits what the Patriots have looked for in some running backs in the past.

With running back, Damien Harris expected to miss several weeks with an injury and running back Ty Montgomery still on the shelf without a definitive timeline for return, the Patriots are a little thinner at running back behind new No. 1 back Rhamondre Stevenson.

The Patriots do have rookie Pierre Strong Jr. and practice-squaders J.J. Taylor and Kevin Harris, but there is reason to believe Ebner could immediately make a case for being on New England’s 53-man roster each week. Also, Ebner only counts for a $746K cap hit in 2022 and $911K in 2023.

Because Bourne is a more accomplished player, the higher draft compensation and the financial break could be enough to help New England swing the deal. Perhaps the savings helps to facilitate another signing or deal later this season.

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