Chicago Bears: Only matter of time until Josh Sitton is gone
With a new coaching regime in place, younger offensive linemen on the roster and potential stars in the draft, will the Chicago Bears release Josh Sitton soon?
Free agency won’t officially open up until March 14, so we’ll have to wait on Jarvis Landry becoming a Bear despite my objections. But the Chicago Bears still have some big decisions to make before that comes around.
Chief among them: will the Bears hold onto guard Josh Sitton for the last year of his contract?
Today marks the first day that the Bears can officially choose whether or not to pick up Sitton’s $8 million team option for 2018. The window closes March 9, just days before teams can officially start signing free agents.
What timing…
When he’s been healthy, Sitton has been a really good player for the Chicago Bears; no one can deny that. In fact, Sitton was one of just three players to earn votes for All-Pro honors for last season.
#Bears had 3 players receive votes for Associated Press All-Pro team: G Josh Sitton & CB Kyle Fuller received 2 votes each. PR Tarik Cohen received 1 vote. https://t.co/iPk4vax8fE
— Brad Biggs (@BradBiggs) January 5, 2018
But we also can’t forget that the Chicago Bears were exploring trade options for him last season to potentially offload his contract back then. Clearly, they’ve been preparing for this for a while.
And with the Bears likely to sniff around free agents like Landry, who will want $14+ million per year, that cash could come in handy.
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Also, Sitton has struggled with injuries in his two seasons with Chicago, missing six games since he got here. With Kyle Long missing significant time as well and facing an uncertain future health-wise, the Bears need guys who can play every week, especially up front.
If Sitton can’t give the Chicago Bears that, he’s not worth that money, especially at age 32.
That said, if the Bears do cut him, they had better sign someone in free agency, draft Quenton Nelson or hope that Jordan Morgan can get good fast. As such, deciding to cut him won’t be without risk.
Still, all signs suggest that he’s not in the Chicago Bears’ long-term plans. And if he will save them $8 million should they cut him, they have to consider it.
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If the team does cut him, it figures to play unpopularly with fans in the immediate aftermath, not unlike when the Bears cut Matt Slauson in 2016.
With that in mind, I have to ask: how much does anyone really miss Slauson now?
By the same token, no one will likely be pining for Sitton in two years. He almost certainly won’t be here anymore. So does it really matter that much whether they get rid of him now or later?