Alshon Jeffery and the Chicago Bears Are “Far Apart” On Contract
With one week until the deadline to reach an agreement on a contract extension, Alshon Jeffery and the Chicago Bears remain “far apart” on a new deal according to NFL.com.
Don’t worry Chicago Bears fans, Alshon Jeffery will be in a Bears uniform in 2016, but with just a week left until the deadline to agree to a contract extension, Jeffery’s future in Chicago beyond this season is in jeopardy. If you believe NFL.com’s report that the Bears and Jeffery are “far apart” on a new deal, Jeffery will play out 2016 under the franchise tag and head to free agency in 2017.
"“There’s not a lot of confidence,” Garafalo said on Thursday’s episode of NFL Total Access. “I sense that both sides really don’t feel strongly about this one. That’s because Alshon Jeffery‘s got a $14.6 million tag. The Bears wanted to come in a couple of million below that.”"
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I always take these reports with a grain of salt. Agents and team can try to plant stories through the media to get their side out there as a deadline approaches. This could be Jeffery’s agent putting this out there to try to push his agenda through the media.
Jeffery sees himself as a #1 wide receiver and when he’s on the field, he’s pretty darn close. In just 9 games last season he put up 807 yards and four TD’s. The two previous seasons, when he played 15 and 16 games respectively, he averaged over 1200 yards and 8.5 TD’s each year.
The problem is that Jeffery has suffered through injuries and struggled to stay on the field. Further, there’s a question whether or not Jeffery is a John Fox “guy.” Foxy wants the footballiest footballers that ever footballed.
Next: The Case Not to Extend Alshon Jeffery
As 670 The Score’s Dan Bernstein wrote, John Fox hasn’t been thrilled with the way Jeffery has handled his offseason business with the Bears, opting to skip out on voluntary OTA’s:
"Fox is privately seething over what he feels is Jeffery’s lack of dedication to being the best he can be for the Bears, sources tell 670 The Score. There are others in the organization who share this view, but the primary conflict is one between a largely unhappy player and an old-school taskmaster of a coach, and it’s an increasingly untenable fit."
That’s the big question that needs to be answered this season – whether or not Jeffery and Fox are a fit. We’ve heard rumors that the small town Jeffery doesn’t like it in the big city of Chicago or that he’s been soured since the Bears traded away his mentor Brandon Marshall. There’s no denying the talent, but unless it’s a good fit philosophically and player and coach are on the same page, it just might not work long-term.
It’s a no-brainer for the Bears to slap the tag on Jeffery and let him play out his rookie contract. While Jeffery will certainly be motivated to get a new contract with the Bears or auditioning for the other 31 teams, the Bears get a chance to see if last year’s first round draft pick Kevin White can step up and become a legitimate #1 wide receiver that his draft slot would dictate.
Stay tuned to Bear Goggles On as we approach the July 15th deadline to see if the Bears and Jeffery can reach a deal.