The following 5 players could lose a lot of money if the final five weeks do not go their way
With a 5-6 team on a 5 game losing streak Matt Nagy called for his team to play with pride. While the team may struggle to find motivation in the midst of a losing streak, it is fair to admit that many of these players are going to play the final five games for themselves.
That is fair as this is a cut-throat business, and your latest tape is going to be what evaluators go to when deciding how to pay you. The following five players still have questionable futures, and the final five weeks could make or break where they stand financially in 2021.
5. Jimmy Graham
Over the past two weeks, Graham has lost his starting job to Cole Kmet. It makes sense for the Chicago Bears to turn to Kmet to try to find a spark in their offense. This is going to hurt Graham in two ways. If Kmet plays well, he is going to earn more time. If he struggles, the Bears will likely have kept losing, and that would mean they are incentivized to play the rookie, Kmet.
No matter what, Jimmy Graham is going to have limited chances. He needs to make the most. Graham is due $10 million next year. He would have a $3 million cap charge but would save the Chicago Bears $7 million if cut. At this point, it would appear that paying $3 million to move on is better than $10 million to keep him here. Of course, if Ryan Pace stays, you never know.
Still, Graham is on the verge of being 34, and on the brink of flaming out of Seattle, Green Bay, and Chicago. Teams are not going to be lining up to pay him. Graham had been a reliable red-zone option at times. If Graham can make some explosive plays, and score touchdowns it would go a long way in another team taking a bite on him. It would take a lot to convince the Chicago Bears to keep him.