Five Worst Trades in Chicago Bears History

4. 2011- The Chicago Bears trade Greg Olsen to the Carolina Panthers for a third round pick

In 2010, Mike Martz was brought in as the new offensive coordinator for the Chicago Bears. The Bears had always run a more conservative run-first approach and with Jay Cutler willing to sling the ball across the field, the Bears felt bringing their offense into the 21st century was necessary and pegged Martz as the man to do it.

Martz had plenty of success running “The Greatest Show on Turf” for the St. Louis Rams in the late 90s and early 2000s, but it turns out when you have two stellar wide receivers in Isaac Bruce and Torry Holt, a borderline hall of fame QB in Kurt Warner, and one of the greatest running backs in NFL history in Marshall Faulk, you’ll be able to score some points.

Martz wanted to run his wide receiver-happy offense and told the Bears he had no use for tight end Greg Olsen. Olsen had been a very reliable target for Jay Cutler when Cutler came over for the Denver Broncos. But with this new offense, who needed a possession receiver when you had the great Johnny Knox and Earl Bennett?

The Bears shipped Olsen to the Carolina Panthers for a 2012 third round pick. Olsen has made multiple Pro Bowls in Carolina and has become an All-Pro level tight end and one of the top three in the league. Defenders of this trade will say that the Bears packaged the draft choice they received in this trade as well as a 2013 third rounder and sent them to the Dolphins for Brandon Marshall which is true. But the Bears still would have made the trade with Miami and sent their other third rounder from 2012 and Bears fans never would have seen Brandon Hardin in a Bears uniform. I think we all would have lived.