A Gamble Move That Could Ease A Major Chicago Bears Concern

Let's be honest. The Chicago Bears are probably done making big moves this year. For GM Ryan Pace, it's all about roster maintenance and scouring the bargain bin for possible hidden gems moving forward. Then again, it's never wise to count this man out from making unexpected moves. See Khalil Mack from two years ago for a reminder.

That said, it's hard to imagine anything the Bears might consider that is worth giving up significant resources. Would anything make sense? Well, here is a scenario that might make more sense than people realize. As of now, the Bears have major question marks at running back. David Montgomery is nursing a groin injury and the depth behind him is Tarik Cohen, Ryan Nall, and Cordarrelle Patterson. Not an inspiring bunch.

This group needs a jolt. So here's a wild idea. What about Le'Veon Bell?

Now this sounds crazy for a few reasons. Bell is the featured back for the Jets. They would never consider such an idea, right? Based on what Brian Costello of the New York Post reported, that may not be entirely true.

Bell has not had an impressive training camp. Anyone who has watched practice over the past two weeks would have Bell ranked third among the running backs with Frank Gore and rookie La’Mical Perine ahead of him if they were being honest...

...“I’m ready to show this is the best Le’Veon Bell that’s ever played in the NFL,” Bell said a few weeks ago.

All of that has looked like talk as Bell has lacked explosiveness in practice, looks slow to hit holes and seems to now lack the vision that once made him arguably the best running back in football. This information is not being gathered from anonymous sources, but two sources I trust implicitly – my left and right eyes.

Chicago Bears could use Bell if they can make the money work

Then there is the issue simmering beneath the surface between Bell and head coach Adam Gase. There were rumors dating back to last season that Gase wasn't a huge fan of Bell and felt the team never should've paid him. The fact the team signed Frank Gore and drafted Lamical Perine in the 4th round seems to reinforce that idea.

Bell fans those flames further when he cryptically sniped Gase for suggesting he was held out of practice drills due to a hamstring issue. He claimed to have no such injury. It's clear there is serious tension involved.

All this being said, Bell is still a good player. He's smart and versatile. Two things the Chicago Bears covet. He'd fit their offense like a glove. The big problem is his contract. The running back holds a cap hit of over $15 million right now. There is no way they could handle that. Not unless the Jets were willing to eat some of that money.

If Bell were traded, they would gain $9.4 million in cap space.

If they were willing to eat some money to where the Bears would be saddled with a cap hit of just $3-4 million? Then it makes sense. The Jets get a draft pick (probably a 5th rounder) and a bit of extra cap space while unloading a bloated contract. Chicago gets a strong addition to their offense who can team with Montgomery in the backfield. Then next year they can cut him with just $4 million in dead money to eat.

Not a perfect plan, but one that could pay dividends for an offense that needs all the help it can get.