Chicago Bears: OLB Pernell McPhee is a likely candidate to be cut

He once had Bears fans chomping at the bit, waiting for his next move, but now that next move may be out the door.

All of the general conversation this offseason, regarding NFL Free Agency, has been the fact that the Cleveland Browns have an abundance of money to spend. While it’s not as much as the Browns, the Chicago Bears have roughly $41 million in cap space at the moment. With the right cuts, Chicago could be in the neighborhood of $80 million.

One of those cuts likely to be made is a guy who, three years ago, had Bears fans riled up and excited to see the defense take shape once more. Pernell McPhee, a year before joining the Bears, was one of the top pass rushers in terms of quarterback pressures and hits while with the Baltimore Ravens.

The crazy thing about McPhee, at the time, was that he didn’t even start for the Ravens. He was making the most of his opportunities and got paid because of it.

Now, in three seasons with the Bears, McPhee has missed a total of 12 games. When on the field and healthy, McPhee is a high motor player who gets the entire defense amped up. This is a great trait to have, but the problem is that he has not been 100 percent healthy in over a year. In 2017, his reps were limited due to this.

If Chicago cuts McPhee, which I believe they certainly will, they save just over $7 million in cap space. That is a lot of money, considering there is a strong class of pass rushers coming out of the draft this year.

With the Bears looking to be heavy players in free agency, specifically to address the lack of offensive weapons for Mitch Trubisky, that money could go a long way.

Of course, the Bears want to improve their cornerback depth as well. To start with, they may need some money to throw at Kyle Fuller if they don’t end up using the franchise tag in that scenario.

Expect Chicago to say goodbye to McPhee after just three seasons and find another pass rusher or two to pair with young gunner Leonard Floyd.