Chicago Bears Free Agency: Allen Robinson agrees to three year deal
The beginning of the NFL free agency legal tampering period was nothing short of boredom for Chicago Bears fans. However, late Monday night, some very exciting news came to fruition…
The expectation with the tampering period is that teams and players will make handshake agreements and those deals create a domino effect. Given the number of trades that transpired over the last week, one might think that we were in for a busy Monday.
Our Chicago Bears did nothing but retain some of their own players. This was somewhat of a disappointment to some fans.
I released a mock draft yesterday that I had based off of some assumptions regarding how the Bears would fare in free agency. I had predicted Allen Robinson would sign on for one year deal that would be worth $14 million. Thankfully, to some degree, I was correct:
Former Jaguars’ WR Allen Robinson intends to sign with the Chicago Bears barring any last-minute snags when free agency opens Wednesday, source tells ESPN.
— Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) March 13, 2018
Josina Anderson was first to report the contract details:
WR Allen Robinson just told me he intends to sign a “3-year, $42M dollar deal with the #Bears.” #TeamNoSleep https://t.co/G6oNqZDdKq
— JosinaAnderson (@JosinaAnderson) March 13, 2018
The Impact of the Allen Robinson Signing:
The early buzz on Monday was that the Bears were going hard after offensive weapons. Allen Robinson was among the many names that were floated around for the last couple of weeks.
Chicago was linked to Robinson, Albert Wilson, Sammy Watkins, Jimmy Graham, Trey Burton, and Austin Seferian-Jenkins throughout the day. This doesn’t mean Ryan Pace is far from finished here; it’s possible that they grab Wilson or one of the tight ends come Wednesday (really give opponents some fits).
The word going around that NFC counterparts Green Bay and San Francisco were in on Chicago’s prime target. This meant that Ryan Pace needed to move quickly.
After this new development, it is clear that the Chicago Bears plan to rebuild their offense.
In fact, it is very clear that those plans revolve around one specific player:
#Bears are all in on the biggest WR and TE names. Desperately trying to put some talent around Mitchell Trubisky
— John McMullen (@JFMcMullen) March 12, 2018
The reality is that the Bears front office and offensive coaching staff understands the bigger issues from last season. Looking over at Jared Goff and the L.A. Rams, they likely see the value of surrounding a franchise passer with quality passing options.
Alshon Jeffrey deciding to sign with the Eagles last year killed any hopes of an efficient Bears passing attack. Now, adding a de facto number one option in Allen Robinson gives Chicago something of a passing game on offense. This will open up some opportunities in the run game for Jordan Howard and Tarik Cohen.
Next: Chicago Bears Free Agency Day 1 Recap
More importantly, adding Robinson into the fold will help with Mitchell Trubisky‘s development. The offense will be able to make their way down the field far more effectively than they did last season. Hopefully, they aren’t done yet. The thought of going “Run, Run, Pass” on every possession will truly become a thing of the past.