Chicago Bears: Downside of Cody Whitehair extension

While everyone is focused on September fifth, the Chicago Bears made a big move that would have an impact on this team for years to come.

Currently, the Chicago Bears roster is full of young talent to the point where the team is set up to compete for multiple championships for years to come. While everyone focuses on the major names like Khalil Mack, Roquan Smith, and Mitchell Trubisky, the Bears signed fourth-year left guard Cody Whitehair to an extension.

A second-round pick in 2016, Whitehair was the Bears starting center until this offseason when the team decided that it was time for him to get back to playing guard, the same position he played in college.

With the Bears giving Whitehair a massive five-year deal, that’s worth $52.5 million dollars, along with $27.5 million dollars guaranteed, the one downside of such a big extension is that the Bears will need to move on from veterans like Kyle Long, Prince Amukamara, and Danny Trevathan.

Essentially, the Bears are getting to a point where money will be tight for the next few years. Whitehair is just the first of many players on a long list that includes Trubisky, Eddie Jackson, Tarik Cohen, and Leonard Floyd that are in line for contract extensions between 2020 and 2022.

What the Bears will need to do in this situation is move on from older guys. As mentioned above, Long, Amukamara, and Trevathan are just the first of three names who’s days are numbered with the Bears. However, once the Bears need to start extending guys like Jackson and Cohen, the team will need to make a decision about veterans like Akiem Hicks, who next offseason, could save the Bears $10.3 million dollars in cap space.

Having to move on from some older players is what keeps teams young in the NFL but another major problem is that now, the Bears roster won’t be as deep or talented at some positions in the near future. In 2020, the Bears are projected to have one of the worst salary cap situations in the NFL.

The best teams always pay their best players and the Bears did that by giving Whitehair a massive extension that he earned. However, this also means that in the future, the Bears will have some roster holes that may not be very noticeable right now, but will have an impact on how the team does in future seasons.