Should Chicago Bears extend Leonard Floyd?

The Chicago Bears are committed to keeping Leonard Floyd in 2020. However, could they try to extend him to reduce his salary cap hit?

While all the discussion from the end of the season press conference was about Mitch Trubisky, and the firings of assistant coaches after, another subject discussed was Ryan Pace’s thoughts on the Leonard Floyd. The Chicago Bears General Manager has a big decision to make with Floyd as he enters the offseason on his fifth-year option.

Floyd is coming off of a poor year, where he was healthy but still managed a career-low four sacks. What’s worse, he had one of the worst one-on-one loss rates among all starting pass rushers. Floyd was not getting home fast.

So, with an unproductive player coming off of a poor year, it is fair to wonder if he is worth the $13.2 million.

However, in his end of season press conference, when Pace was asked about his production, Pace shrugged it off, saying that he was impressed with Floyd’s play.

"“We’re happy with Leonard. I know the stats don’t always say that. Leonard does a lot of things that go a little undervalued. The versatility he provides, things he can do in coverage. Not a lot of outside linebackers that can provide the versatility he provides. Would we like more production with him? Yeah. Would he like that? Yeah. There’s a lot of things he does that we like. For him, he plays with such a high motor. He plays physical. He played the run really well this year. Again, there’s a lot of things in coverage that he does that a lot of outside linebackers in the NFL can’t do.”"

That is a stronger endorsement than he gave Trubisky. You can argue the worth all you want, there is no doubt that Floyd will be back.

The question is at what cost. He may not be worth $13.2 million, but he may be worth keeping for the next couple of years. Floyd will be entering the year as a possible free agent in 2021. If the Bears offered him more long term security, they could keep him on a cheaper salary on a per-year basis. Any type of extension would bring his first-year salary down.

The other option is to keep him at a higher salary and have him play for a contract. You could see an incentivized Floyd and a more productive Floyd. However, that would also potentially put the Bears in a situation where they could lose him after a good year, or are faced with the idea of paying up after 2021.

Having little to no depth at the position puts the Bears in a tough spot as well. They are going to have to think about a long term option to develop behind Floyd this year if they do not plan on extending Floyd. Would that be one of their second-round picks? Then they are sacrificing assets for the offense.

The Bears need Floyd and will keep Floyd. However, he presents a series of long term questions that have to be answered in the coming months.