Alshon Jeffery will not be franchise tagged. With under two weeks until the start of free agency, it's clear the Chicago Bears are prepared to let him test the open market. This has caused somewhat of a panic. How can a team that went 3-13 last season justify letting one of their best offensive playmakers walk for literally nothing in return?
It's a fair question but complicated to answer. Jeffery expects to get paid top wide receiver money and he's probably right. Yet his production and availability over the past two seasons don't reflect that of a top wide receiver. Not even close. Then there is the fact that maybe he and the new regime of GM Ryan Pace and head coach John Fox don't think it's a good fit.
Nothing is really clear. What is clear is that the Bears now have a tough job ahead of them. Finding a way to replace the void on offense Jeffery will leave behind. Most are already turning their eyes towards the upcoming NFL draft, but that may be premature. Options could exist for them in free agency too. Hidden ones looking for just the right fit.
THE WRIGHT STUFF
Kendall Wright is not going to be a household name among most NFL fans when the 2017 free agency period begins. Why should they? The guy hasn't caught more than 500 yards passing since 2014 and is only 5'10". Everything about his status suggests he'll be a mid tier addition on some roster expected to compete for the #3 receiver job. Is that really the case though? There was a point in time where Wright was an emerging young receiver, the 20th overall pick of the Tennessee Titans in 2012. The same draft Jeffery fell into the first round. A year later he appeared to cement his status as an up-and-coming talent with 1,079 yards. Much of that success due in part to his growing connection with then-offensive coordinator Dowell Loggains. A connection that was unceremoniously severed after the season end. Wright hasn't been the same since. Bill Barnwell of ESPN explained where things went wrong for Wright during his last few seasons in Tennessee. Most of it having to do with a simple poor fit in the new offensive scheme under the offensive coordinator and current head coach Mike Mularkey."Wright isn't a big name, but as a third wideout in an offense that loves to go three-wide and throw short passes, Wright's agility makes him a solid fit. He caught 94 passes in 2013 and looked to be on the verge of a Jarvis Landry-style career, but Wright fell out of favor in Tennessee and eventually landed in a scheme that didn't play to his strengths under Mike Mularkey. The Titans ran three-WR formations a league-low 422 times in 2016..."Tennessee became more of a power running team under Mularkey and weren't throwing the ball as much. As a result the particular talents of Wright became less effective. He'll have to find a team that likes to run receiver-heavy formations in their offense. Of course it's already been proven that Loggains did that during his time in Tennessee and did it again this past season for Chicago. Of the 559 pass attempts Bears quarterbacks made, 434 of them were made in formations featuring three or more receivers. Or 77.6% of their pass plays.
