Chicago Bears fans were very anxious during free agency. The Bears made the first signing of the NFL’s league tampering period when they signed D’Andre Swift. Since then, Chicago has been very quiet on the free-agent front. When the Buffalo Bills signed Curtis Samuel to a three-year deal, Bears fans turned their anxiety into anger. Those feelings drastically changed when Ryan Poles pulled a rabbit out of his hat.
Late Thursday night, Jay Glazer of Fox Sports announced that the Chicago Bears acquired wide receiver Keenan Allen in a trade with the Los Angeles Chargers. So, what does this trade mean for all the parties involved and the outlook for the 2024 NFL Draft?
What this trade means for Keenan Allen
According to Ian Rappaport, the Chargers asked Allen to take a pay cut. He declined and was shipped to Chicago. Allen will receive his five million dollar roster bonus from Chicago on March 17th.
What this trade means for the LA Chargers
Since the new league year began, the Chargers have cut Mike Williams and traded Keenan Allen. They also let Gerald Everett and Austin Ekeler swing with other teams. That’s a lot of production to replace. The Chargers now have six draft picks in the top 150 picks of this April’s draft:
1st round pick (5th overall)
2nd round pick (37th overall)
3rd round pick (69th overall)
4th round pick (105th overall)
4th round pick (110th overall via Chicago)
5th round pick (140th overall)
The Chargers’ biggest needs are wide receiver, offensive tackle, interior defensive line, and cornerback. Los Angeles could be the thorn in Chicago’s side if they chose to draft Malik Nabers, Rome Odunze, or Joe Alt with the fifth overall pick.
What this trade means for the Chicago Bears
The Bears traded the 110th overall pick to the Chargers to acquire Allen. The Bears are now down to four total draft picks:
1st round pick (1st overall)
1st round pick (9th overall)
3rd round pick (75th overall)
4th round pick (112nd overall via Philadelphia)
Chicago’s biggest needs are center, defensive end, left tackle, and wide receiver. Poles has done a great job beefing up his offensive line with depth, but the Bears are still missing star-studded talent outside of Darnell Wright. An argument could be made for the Bears to draft Joe Alt, Olumuyiwa “Olu” Fashanu, or JC Latham to bolster the left side of the line. Drafting a left tackle would make Braxton Jones the backup tackle and trigger the eventual release of Larry Borom in September. But a third wide receiver, like Malik Nabers or Rome Odunze, would be even more attractive.
Keenan Allen has spent his entire 11-year career on the Chargers. In that span, he amassed 904 receptions, 10,530 receiving yards, and 59 touchdowns. Allen has also ran the ball 18 times for 113 yards and seven rushing touchdowns. He has made the Pro Bowl six times, and won Comeback Player of the Year in 2017.
Allen has had plenty of success playing against the NFC North:
vs Chicago (two games): 15 receptions, 122 yards
vs Detroit (three games): 34 receptions, 439 yards, two touchdowns
vs Green Bay (three games): 27 receptions, 313 yards, one touchdown
vs Minnesota (four games): 47 catches, 545 yards, two touchdowns
Last season, Allen registered his only completed pass, a 49-yard touchdown to Mike Williams, in a victory over the Minnesota Vikings.
The two main problems about Allen are his age and durability. He will be 32 years old in April, and has only played four full seasons without missing a game. Based on his age, Allen looks like a one-year rental. According to Spotrac, Allen carries a cap hit of $23.1 million this season and, will be an unrestricted free agent in 2025.
Despite these concerns, Allen is easily affordable for Chicago. According to Bleacher Report, the Bears now have an estimated 34.09 million dollars left in cap space after the trade with LA. The pairing of Allen and DJ Moore gives the Bears two number-one receivers with whom a rookie quarterback or Justin Fields can thrive. The last time the Bears had a talented wide receiver pairing like this was with Brandon Marshall and Alshon Jeffery in 2014. The Bears now have D’Andre Swift, Khalil Herbert, DJ Moore, Keenan Allen, Cole Kmet, and Gerald Everett as their primary weapons. That is a significant assembly of talent for Shane Waldron to work with.
Draft Outlook
Here is my projected top ten mock draft now that Keenan Allen is a Chicago Bear:
1st Overall (Bears) – Caleb Williams
2nd Overall (Commanders) – Jayden Daniels
3rd Overall (Patriots) – Drake Maye
4th Overall (Cardinals) – Marvin Harrison Jr
5th Overall (Vikings MOCK TRADE with Chargers) – JJ McCarthy
6th Overall (Giants) – Malik Nabers
7th Overall (Titans) – Joe Alt
8th Overall (Falcons) – Dallas Turner
9th Overall (Bears) – Rome Odunze
10th Overall (Jets) – Olu Fashuna
The Vikings mock trade with the Chargers makes a lot of sense, considering that Minnesota lost Kirk Cousins, and has acquired the 23rd overall pick from the Houston Texans. New Chargers head coach, Jim Harbaugh, has a lot of needs to fill. The Chargers need to revamp their offensive around Justin Herbert and fix a defense that has struggled recently. Los Angeles would be better off trading down six spots and adding more draft capital.
The Las Vegas Raiders, Denver Broncos, and Seattle Seahawks could also trade into the top ten for a quarterback if the top four quarterbacks are gone.
This would be a dream scenario for the Bears. If Allen is truly a one-year rental, Caleb Williams and Rome Odunze would be the perfect way to lock down the Bears’ offensive future for the next decade.
