Insider Warns Other Teams Are Eyeing Nick Kwiatkoski

Perception and reality aren't always the same things when it comes to the NFL. What Chicago Bears fans might think about a certain player on their roster isn't true to other teams around the league. That was proven true last year when Adrian Amos secured a lucrative contract from the Green Bay Packers. Now it seems another player some might see as good but not great could receive lots of attention next month is Nick Kwiatkoski.

Albert Breer of the MMQB provided a list of names that he believes are going to get paid more money than people realize once free agency opens. The fourth-year inside linebacker was among them. It's his belief that Kwiatkoski timed his breakout from obscurity to absolute perfection this past year, showing everybody that he could be a diamond in the rough who is on the cusp of becoming a really good starter somewhere.

That is unless the Bears secure him first.

"Here’s the guy who’d never really gotten the chance to be a full-time starter, then did… at just the right time. The fourth-year former fourth-round pick started Chicago’s final seven games and showed that he can play the middle for someone, and he could get paid after guys like Cory Littleton and Joe Schobert come off the board. And maybe that someone will be his old coordinator, Vic Fangio in Denver."

Nick Kwiatkoski stated his case for the Bears

Ryan Pace is in a serious predicament. He has a tough choice to make regarding the inside linebacker position. Not only is Kwiatkoski a free agent, but so is longtime starter Danny Trevathan. Both played really well in 2019 though Trevathan got hurt in the second half of the season, thus enabling Kwiatkoski to step in and excel. The Bears GM must decide to either go with the established starter and defensive leader or roll with the younger guy who appears to be ascending.

Pace drafted Kwiatkoski the same year he signed Trevathan. No doubt he probably hoped at that time the 4th round pick could develop into an eventual starter. Now it appears that hope is coming true. Letting Trevathan walk would be difficult, but the the NFL is a young man's game. Keeping the Bears defense strong for the long-term has to be their overriding goal. Paying Kwiatkoski would be a gamble. It's one worth taking though.

That said, if the team did decide to let him walk then it's not necessarily a terrible thing either. If what Breer says is true, then some other team will give him a lucrative contract. This will set the Bears up to potentially receive a compensatory draft pick in 2021.