ESPN Trashes The Tremaine Edmunds Signing Based On False Info

In case you need a reminder that ESPN is a far cry from what it was decades ago, you need look no further than the work of Bill Barnwell. Their reporter has long been an obvious Chicago Bears critic. Even when they make good moves, he finds ways to nitpick them. Nobody can say why he is like this, but it's a simple reality that fans must deal with from someone who is supposed to be impartial. Yet he found a way to outdo himself this week when he graded every NFL off-season, and Tremaine Edmunds helped expose his shoddy work.

Barnwell ranked the Bears' off-season 13th in the league. He singled out their inability to find an edge rusher as a primary reason for the lower ranking—that and not landing a left tackle despite having a promising youngster already in place with Braxton Jones. Things really went off the rails when he tore down the deal Chicago made with Edmunds, the two-time Pro Bowl linebacker from Buffalo. It became apparent almost immediately that Barnwell did little to no research on the team's plans for him.

"Davis signed a three-year, $30 million deal, while the most expensive signing was the four-year, $72-million pact that landed Tremaine Edmunds from Buffalo. Eberflus needed speed at linebacker after trading away Roquan Smith, and the coach might hope Edmunds becomes his Shaquille Leonard, but Edmunds hasn't been consistently great as a pro. This feels like a case of a team paying a player for what it wants him to be as opposed to what he's likely to be, which usually doesn't end well."

Tremaine Edmunds is not filling the Leonard spot.

That was never the plan. If Barnwell had paid attention at all, he'd have heard multiple statements from Matt Eberflus that the team would deploy him at middle linebacker in this defense, not outside linebacker. The idea is for Edmunds to be more of a Luke Kuechley or Brian Urlacher-type that runs the show and drops into deep coverage over the middle. Few in the NFL can do that. Edmunds absolutely can. It is one of the primary reasons the Bears were willing to pay him over $17 million per year. He's a perfect fit for this scheme.

Yet Barnwell forged ahead, believing Eberflus planned to try shifting him to a position he's never played before because he happens to resemble a linebacker he worked with in Indianapolis. This is another reminder to be careful about taking opinions from ESPN seriously. Too often, it's been revealed they did little homework on the subject matter. See Stephen A. Smith. Tremaine Edmunds likely won't be the next Urlacher. Expect him to continue being a good player that can be great for stretches. There is nothing wrong with that.