3 Players Bears Must Target to Get Back in the Playoff Race
The Chicago Bears are at the point where they just want one win more than anything.
A playoff berth is nowhere close to the conversation around the franchise at the moment because of how awful the team has looked for most of the 2023 NFL season.
The reversal of fortune from 0-4 to a playoff berth seems unlikely, but the Bears could at least make an effort to get closer to the postseason spots by making a trade or two.
Chicago is viewed as a seller more than a buyer after Week 4, and that starts with the expected departure of Chase Claypool after that situation blew up ahead of Sunday’s game with the Denver Broncos.
Regardless of their record, the Bears need another wide receiver for Justin Fields to work with so that he can find success in the pocket and D.J. Moore moves into more space down field.
The Bears have countless other problems, but if they could at least another target for Fields, they could be competitive in many more games in 2023.
Kendrick Bourne
The Bears probably are not in the market for a superstar wide receiver after their offseason acquisition of Moore.
They could be in the market for a supporting piece who could jump over Darnell Mooney on the depth chart.
Kendrick Bourne could be dangled on the trade block by the New England Patriots because they appear to be going nowhere with Mac Jones at quarterback.
Bourne is an ideal target for the Bears because he has an expiring contract and can be a volume pass catcher in certain games.
New England is tied to JuJu Smith-Schuster and DeVante Parker for multiple years. The Bears would not want to trade more draft capital than they need to to land a veteran wide out.
The Patriots could ask for a late-round pick in exchange for the veteran wide receiver, who may leave the franchise anyway in the offseason.
Hunter Renfrow
A Moore-Hunter Renfrow connection with Cole Kmet and Robert Tonyan at tight end might give the Bears a functional passing offense.
Renfrow only has five catches in 2023 for the Las Vegas Raiders, who appear to be one of the Bears’ competitors for the No. 1 overall pick.
Renfrow is more expensive than other potential trade targets, but the Bears could get out of his contract in the offseason instead of paying him $11 million in 2024.
The 27-year-old is only two years removed from a 1,000-yard season. He could at least be a volume pass-catcher across the middle to complement Moore on the outside.
Chicago may be unwilling to make any deal to improve its roster because of the potential to pick first in the 2024 NFL draft, but if it wants to make a push to get better, it could look at Renfrow and other slot receivers to improve the unit around Fields.
The Bears and New York Giants could make a wide receiver swap that does not resonate across the NFL, but helps both teams.
Chicago could offer to send Claypool to New York in exchange for Darius Slayton. Claypool would get a change of scenery and the Bears would get a veteran option for Fields to work with.
A draft pick might suffice in this potential trade if the Giants do not want Claypool, whose trade value has submarined in the last year.
Any and all options have to be explored to improve the wide receiver room at a low cost. Slayton is scheduled to make $2.5 million next season and his deal has a potential out in the offseason.
The Giants could opt to give Jalin Hyatt and Wan’Dale Robinson more time to work with Daniel Jones in the coming weeks, and that would leave Slayton on the outside of the wide receiver production.
A deal for Slayton would make a minimal improvement for the Bears, but even one step toward a competent offense would be welcome.
