This Latest Chicago Bears Trade Rumor Is Insane, So It Must Be True

A Chicago Bears trade rumor is always fun because fans love clinging to hope when their team isn't that good. They believe the addition of one talented player might finally tip the scales in their favor. That was the hope with Jay Cutler in 2009, and with Brandon Marshall in 2012. To be fair those two deals did bring short-term gains but were ultimately unsuccessful in keeping the Bears near the top of the NFL heap. Now the rumors are swirling up again. It's easy to understand why. Chicago is 1-4 and have suffered a series of close calls that could easily have them 3-2. Most often the reason for these narrow misses is a lack of talent at wide receiver. The injury to Cameron Meredith continues to loom ever larger with each passing week. What makes it even more frustrating is that #2 overall pick Mitch Trubisky is finally in the starting lineup. He has no legitimate weapons. This has increased the cries for GM Ryan Pace to find somebody. Anybody who can help. Of course free agency is picked clean. So that just leaves the trade market and there's nobody who can be had for an affordable price. Right? (continue on next page)

Chicago Bears trade rumor now connected to Amari Cooper. Seriously.

Something is going on in Oakland. Things aren't clicking like they did last year. Many of the concerns are surrounding wide receiver Amari Cooper who just hasn't looked like himself all year. Doug Farrar of Bleacher Report believes that a schism is forming and the two sides may be souring on each other. Could that open the improbable door for Chicago to pounce? He explained his reasoning.

"One thing Trubisky doesn't have, however, is a receiver corps that's up to NFL standards. Rookie speedster Tarik Cohen leads the team with 25 catches, and veteran Kendall Wright tops the stat sheet with 200 receiving yards, but the offense is without an alpha receiver who can take on coverages from top cornerbacks. Meanwhile, in Oakland, 2015 No. 4 overall pick Amari Cooper is struggling. Cooper posted 1,000-yard seasons in his first and second years, but the communication between him and quarterbacks Derek Carr and EJ Manuel has fallen apart. Cooper leads the NFL with seven drops, which is especially distressing because he's done that on just 29 targets. On Sunday against Baltimore, Cooper was targeted just once by Manuel. Perhaps a change of scenery is what Cooper needs; for whatever reason, he's on the outs with the Raiders, and Trubisky could benefit from his presence even if the occasional pass gets dropped."

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Only a naive person would actually think this is feasible

Even with his struggles Cooper is still the most dangerous weapon the Raiders have. Great players go through their share of problems. It seems he can't find his groove to this point. Injuries to Derek Carr and Michael Crabtree haven't helped. It's allowed defenses to put extra focus on him, and that can be frustrating. Frustration can lead to the drop issues. Then there's the simple matter that GM Ryan Pace wouldn't do it. In three years the only bold trades he's made came in the draft. He has never traded for a veteran player of high value before. Given the Bears are still in a rebuilding phase it doesn't feel likely he'd sacrifice high draft choices to acquire Cooper. Sure he'd love a chance to get his young quarterback a potential stud receiver, but he has to be smart about this. The 2018 offseason looks like it will have a strong crop of receiving talent, both in free agency and the draft. If he plays his cards right he could end up getting multiple quality targets for the same price he'd have to pay for Cooper. It's a fun rumor but hard to imagine at this point.