Bear Digest

Nuts and Bolts of Where Bears Stand with Carson Wentz

A long siege looks possible if reports about Eagles trade demands are even close to being correct, and the end date wouldn't be until just after the start of free agency in March unless the sides involved in standoff start to budge
Gene Chamberlain|
Nuts and Bolts of Where Bears Stand with Carson Wentz
Nuts and Bolts of Where Bears Stand with Carson Wentz

The Philadelphia Eagles have apparently set the Bears and Indianapolis Colts up for a long siege with the Carson Wentz situation.

Nothing specific about possible terms of a trade for Wentz has been revealed by any of the parties involved but Michael Lombardi came about as close on Tuesday to anyone at revealing the demands by Philadelphia for any team trying to obtain their quarterback.

Lombardi, the former NFL executive who now writes for the Athletic as an analyst, attributed a comment to one "team source" and said the Eagles had asked a price which was "ridiculous, laughable, and not worth countering."

In his tweet on Tuesday, Lombardi said the Eagles will never receive their original asking price until they lower expectations "based on the uncertainty of the player and contract... ."

The Bears and Indianapolis Colts are known to have expressed interest and it's believed both made offers, but no reports have given an exact Eagles demand. 

On Tuesday, Mike Garafolo of NFL Network reported the Eagles are waiting for an offer they feel is fair but haven't gotten one. 

Steep trade demands are typical of talks this far in advance of the start of the new league year. This begins March 17 when free agency starts.

The Eagles will absorb a cap hit of $34 million if they trade Wentz, according to Sports Illustrated's Andrew Brandt.

The situation is setting up as a possible waiting game with a March 20 deadline because Wentz is also due a $10 million contract bonus if still with the Eagles on that day.

Wentz hasn't officially demanded a trade but his relationship with the Eagles has been reported by ESPN's Adam Schefter and Chris Mortensen as being strained. This all stemmed from his benching in favor of Jalen Hurts late last season.

The Colts need a quarterback after the retirement of Philip Rivers and are trying to reunite Wentz with coach Frank Reich, who was Philadelphia's offensive coordinator in 2017 when they won the Super Bowl. 

The Philadelphia Inquirer on Monday suggested Eagles general manager Howie Roseman started out asking for two first-round picks "and something else," but used the term "apparently" in the statement and didn't attribute it to any source with a team or within the league as Lombardi's comment did.

The Bears are hoping to reunite Wentz with his former quarterbacks coach, John DeFilippo. In 2016-17 Wentz rose to prominence after being the second pick of the 2016 draft, and DeFilippo was his Eagles quarterbacks coach.

Sports Illustrated's Albert Breer on Monday reported DeFilippo believes he can repair any problems Wentz displayed last year when he led the NFL in interceptions with 15, and had his quarterback rating drop from 93.1 in 2019 to 72.8 in 2020.

The Take from SI's Albert Breer on Deal:

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Gene Chamberlain
GENE CHAMBERLAIN

Gene Chamberlain has covered the Chicago Bears full time as a beat writer since 1994 and prior to this on a part-time basis for 10 years. He covered the Bears as a beat writer for Suburban Chicago Newspapers, the Daily Southtown, Copley News Service and has been a contributor for the Daily Herald, the Associated Press, Bear Report, CBS Sports.com and The Sporting News. He also has worked a prep sports writer for Tribune Newspapers and Sun-Times newspapers.

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