Denver Report Calls Derek Carr QB of Interest to Bears
You can always tell it's getting close to the combine and March because the rumors and unverified reports just keep coming like a stream flowing wildly in the spring.
Benjamin Allbright, who doesn't cover the Bears or the Raiders, reported the Bears have been "quietly looking" at other quarterback options this offseason.
This much is true. They have done everything else quietly this offseason, much as they do every offseason.
Allbright also said that if the Raiders were to move on from Derek Carr, the Bears would be interested.
Carr has a $21.5 million cap cost and is under contract through 2022. The Raiders could take the hit for trading Carr, it's true, but who really wants to absorb $7.9 million of dead cap space?
Regardless, it wouldn't be surprising if the Bears are interested considering Khalil Mack's relationship with Carr and also how quarterbacks coach John DeFilippo has worked with the Carr.
Carr's statistics aren't a huge upgrade over Trubisky's and he's played in the same number of playoff games. One of the constant criticisms of Carr is he checks down too soon. The end result is the same thing you get with Trubisky's inaccurate downfield passes: Carr has a poor yards-per-attempt average. With Trubisky the ball goes out and doesn't get complete; with Carr it doesn't go out.
The report says Trubisky will get the shot to be "the guy." This much everyone already knew because GM Ryan Pace said it long ago.
He also said the leash is short, which it better be considering what happened last year and how Pace's contract expires after 2021.
All told, nothing to see here, move along.
If the Bears haven't been considering all options, they aren't doing their job.
There are several other veterans available who are cheaper, provide an ideal backup situation for Trubisky, and the Bears most likely will explore those—unless of course the Raiders decide to cut Carr.
That would be an entirely different circumstance since they'd have to send no draft picks to anyone, and with the way the Bears have had their draft pick cache gutted by the deal for Mack with the Raiders, it would be difficult to see them dealing any picks of value for anyone short of a star starting quarterback.
Carr doesn't fit that level at all with his lifetime starting record of 39-55, and a passer rating and yards per attempt only slightly better than Trubisky's.
Allbright is a talk show host, rporter and analyst for the Denver Broncos flagship station.
Measure this one with a dose of reality once and cut twice.
Twitter: BearDigest@BearsOnMaven
