Bears Urged to Make Aggressive Trade Play for $61 Million WR
The Chicago Bears have shown enough life over the past four weeks to function as buyers ahead of the NFL trade deadline if the right kind of player is available.
Bleacher Report’s NFL staff argued on Monday, October 23, that wide receiver Courtland Sutton is that player, adding that the Bears should make a move to deal for him now.
After trading Chase Claypool, the Bears could use a contested-catch threat like Sutton. He appeared on B/R’s trade block column this week, as the [Denver] Broncos are expected to be sellers at the deadline.
While Chicago also isn’t anywhere close to competing for a playoff spot this season, the wideout just turned 28 years old and is under contract through 2025. So, he and Justin Fields — or whoever the Bears’ quarterback is moving forward — could form a nice connection for a few years in the Windy City.
Courtland Sutton Offers Bears Upgrade Over Darnell Mooney
The Bears locked up their No. 1 wide receiver when they traded with the Carolina Panthers for D.J. Moore ahead of the 2023 NFL Draft. However, who Chicago’s second wideout is going to be long-term remains to be seen.
Darnell Mooney is the leading candidate for that job, though there is no guarantee he will be back in 2024. Mooney is playing the final season of his four-year, $3.6 million rookie deal and will be a free agent in March.
Reasonable questions have arisen as to how much Mooney is worth considering his play and injury history over the past couple of seasons. He put up a 1,000-yard campaign in 2021, but missed five games last year due to injury as his production dipped significantly. Mooney has produced just 14 catches for 184 yards and a touchdown through six games in 2023, per Pro Football Reference.
Brad Spielberger of Pro Football Focus named Mooney as a “very intriguing potential trade chip” on October 19, which makes sense if the Bears don’t regard him as a long-term fit alongside Moore. Sutton, on the other hand, fits that bill perfectly.
Courtland Sutton Viable No. 2 Wide Receiver for Bears
Sutton represents a significant upgrade over Mooney, but carries the price tag that comes along with it. He is currently playing the second season of a four-year, $61 million contract, though that is reasonable money for a player who produces the way Sutton has over the last several seasons. Chicago has $96 million in projected 2024 cap space as of Tuesday.
Despite playing with a subpar offense in Denver, Sutton has produced at least 700 receiving yards in four of his first five NFL campaigns. The one year he didn’t (2020) was marred by injury, which cost Sutton all but one regular season game.
Sutton has amassed 270 catches for 3,838 yards and 19 touchdowns in 72 appearances across his six-year professional career, per Pro Football Reference. He has tallied 31 catches for 351 yards and 5 touchdowns through seven games this season.
Chicago owns two fourth-round picks in next year’s draft — one likely to come at the top of the round (their own) and one likely to fall near the end of the round (acquired from the Philadelphia Eagles). The Bears’ earlier fourth-round pick is a logical place to start negotiations for Sutton, and the team can up its offer to a 2024 third-rounder if the front office believes that much in Sutton’s future promise as a 28-year-old with a consistent history of production.
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