Chicago Bears should cut Trey Burton this offseason

Now that the Chicago Bears playoff aspirations for 2019 are officially over, we must turn our attention to the offseason and 2020. One name I want to see released despite the high cap hit is Trey Burton.

The Chicago Bears signed Trey Burton in 2018 hoping he could develop into an every-down tight end. No, Burton was actually brought in to be their version of Travis Kelce. Burton is clearly not on the same level as Kelce and this season has proven that even further. In fact, I am not sure Burton is on the same level as current tight ends J.P. Holtz and Jesper Horsted.

Right now, the Bears have Trey Burton locked up throughout 2022. This was his big cap hit year though and personally I believe Ryan Pace should cut or trade Burton this offseason. Maybe the Eagles would want him back as their third-string tight end? Alright, that is wishful thinking, but no matter what, Burton should not be in a Chicago Bears uniform next season.

The Bears will owe Trey Burton $8,550,000 in 2020. He will be the 11th highest-paid player on the team as contracts stand today. All of that for a guy who caught 14 passes this season. Not one of them was for a touchdown either. I know he was playing “hurt”, but there is no reason the team should allocate that type of money to Burton.

What is more disgusting is that Burton was essentially paid $610,714 dollars per catch this season. Yikes. I was not down on the Burton signing last year, but it seems Ryan Pace whiffed on this one. Throw Adam Shaheen into the mix and it seems like Pace struggles to evaluate tight end talent. That said, I want a new tight end room in 2020.

If the Bears do elect to cut ties with Trey Burton this offseason, they will be paying him $7,500,000 dollars to go away. That would make him the 13th highest-paid player on the Bears roster. For that reason alone, I understand the argument of keeping him instead of saving $1 million dollars for nothing. Rationally and logically it makes more sense to wait until 2021 to cut him. The Bears would save over $6 million dollars in 2021 if they wait.

Here is the thing. I do not care. Burton is taking a spot away from other prospects who deserve a chance. Hell, even though Jesper Horsted missed an opportunity to pitch the ball to his right for a legit chance at a Bears’ potentially tying touchdown on Sunday, I would rather Horsted see snaps at starting tight end next season.

The Bears and Ryan Pace need to make some tough decisions if they want to continue moving forward with this team. Cutting Trey Burton should not be one of those tough decisions. Move on and use the money elsewhere.