Chicago Bears Week 11 Free Agent Stock Watch
By Tooch
Delivering an even bigger headbutt than Erik Walden, it’s your Chicago Bears week 11 free agent stock watch:
RISING
Robbie Gould
Phew, that was close. Gould’s 38-yard game-winning field goal on Sunday came intensely close to being disastrous. But the results were undeniable. Gould won the game for the Bears with his leg and continues to be the epitome of consistency for the team, making 19 of his 20 field goal attempts this season — including a 3-for-3 performance against Baltimore in cinema-worthy bad weather. This should be a no-brainer decision for the Bears in the off-season as Gould is still 31 years old and can sign a long-term deal at minimal salary damage to the franchise.
Josh McCown
McCown is becoming too easy of a choice for this category each week. Marc Trestman must truly be the quarterback guru as advertised since McCown looks nothing like his career 73.6 rating. Jay Cutler says that he’s anticipating a Dec. 1 return, but maybe it’s McCown who should be staying under center for the remainder of the season. We’ll save that argument for another day though.
Tim Jennings
It’s no secret that the Ravens are thin at wide receiver. Torrey Smith is the team’s clear No. 1, but with Marlon Brown out with an injury, quarterback Joe Flacco had very few legitimate threats to throw the ball to on Sunday. Jennings used this to his advantage and helped limit Flacco to just 162 yards passing and one touchdown. The diminutive cornerback tallied three tackles in the game and came up with a couple of huge pass defenses late in the game to help seal the win.
James Anderson
Anderson is definitely not the fastest or strongest player on the field, but he has played consistently strong defense for the Bears this season. As I’ve previously noted, his veteran leadership and intelligence can benefit fellow linebackers Jon Bostic and Khaseeem Greene and help them develop into future starters (without having to play due to injuries). Anderson finished Sunday’s game with eight tackles — seven solo — including one for a loss. The Bears should bring him back for at least another season to help bridge the gap between linebacker regimes in Chicago.