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5 reasons Chicago Bears will release Taylor Gabriel

By Parker Hurley

LANDOVER, MD - SEPTEMBER 23: Taylor Gabriel #18 of the Chicago Bears celebrates after scoring a touchdown during the first half against the Washington Redskins at FedExField on September 23, 2019 in Landover, Maryland. (Photo by Will Newton/Getty Images)
LANDOVER, MD - SEPTEMBER 23: Taylor Gabriel #18 of the Chicago Bears celebrates after scoring a touchdown during the first half against the Washington Redskins at FedExField on September 23, 2019 in Landover, Maryland. (Photo by Will Newton/Getty Images) /
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MIAMI, FL – OCTOBER 14:. (Photo by Mark Brown/Getty Images)
MIAMI, FL – OCTOBER 14:. (Photo by Mark Brown/Getty Images) /

4. Value

When looking at his salary cap hit, the question becomes, is he worth $6.5 million. According to OverTheCap.com, he is not even worth the dead cap that the Bears will have to pay to release him.

They valued his 2019 season at $1.86 million. He has a $2 million dead cap hit if he is let go. That cap hit may sting, but paying a $6.5 million player, $1.86 million is a bigger loss. Especially with the other needs on the roster.

Gabriel missed time, and if he played a full season he may have increased his overall value. Still, he played over half of a season, so even doubling that value would be under $4 million.

When looking at the current free-agent market, PFF has Breshad Perriman and Nelson Agholor fifth and sixth as their free-agent wide receivers. OTC valued Perriman at $5 million in 2019 and Agholor at $2.8 million.

Below is a look at how the two compared to Gabriel, not only through 2019 but 2018 as well. They all played in a similar number of games and saw similar production over the past two years.

Rece Rece Rece Rece Rece Rk Player From To AV G Rec Yds TD Y/R Lng 1 Nelson Agholor 2018 2019 9 27 103 1099 7 10.7 83 2 Taylor Gabriel 2018 2019 10 25 96 1041 6 10.8 54 3 Breshad Perriman 2018 2019 7 24 52 985 8 18.9 66

Provided by Pro-Football-Reference.com: View Original Table
Generated 2/12/2020.

Perriman may see a value similar to what Gabriel is getting, but Agholor is not going to make anywhere near $6.5 million per year in average salary. These are players who have put up similar numbers over the past two years and will not be making as much.

Gabriel did not match his value last season, and on an open market may not get a deal that he is currently on. That is when you know a player is going to have to take a pay cut. If Gabriel does want to take a pay cut, it is one thing. If not, it is time to move on.

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