Chicago Bears trade for Derek Carr in one of these reasonable deals
By Ryan Heckman
The Chicago Bears are set to be major players in the quarterback market, and a Derek Carr trade would be the perfect move.
Since taking over as the Las Vegas Raiders head coach a few years ago, some wonder if Jon Gruden has wanted to go out and get “his quarterback” for this team. He’s stuck with Carr to this point, but bringing in Marcus Mariota last year to back him up was a curious move. Gruden has always spoken highly of Mariota and loved his skill set.
Was that a move that signaled Gruden was testing the waters in terms of potentially replacing Carr?
The Raiders have the 17th overall pick in the draft this year and could definitely look to move up and make a move for one of the top quarterbacks. With Gruden being a quarterback-focused coach, he may decide that this is the time to move Carr and go after his quarterback of the future. To this point, the Raiders have been a pretty average team under Gruden. A big move at quarterback could signal Gruden is done with mediocrity.
That could work to the Bears’ favor, who would benefit greatly with a Carr trade. He’s been an above-average quarterback for a while now but doesn’t offer an offense the ability to scramble and gain yards with his legs. However, the fact that he’s a smart quarterback who has had seasons much better than either Mitchell Trubisky or Nick Foles recently makes him an attractive trade target.
One of the best things about trading for Carr is the fact that his contract is extremely affordable in comparison to many other recent quarterback deals. This year, he counts as a $22 million cap hit. Next year, it’s actually less at roughly $19.8 million.
When looking at someone like Dak Prescott who has expressed his desire for $35-$40 million in annual average salary, Carr’s contract looks a whole lot nicer. Quarterback contracts will only get more expensive in the future, so getting two years of Carr on this kind of salary is a huge victory.
What would it take to get Carr? There are a few scenarios that seem to make sense.