It sounds like the Chicago Bears could be active at the NFL trade deadline for a third consecutive season in 2024 — though as sellers, not buyers.
The Bears are exploring their trade options with benched veteran guard Nate Davis and third-year pass rusher Dominique Robinson ahead of the league’s 2024 trade deadline at 4 p.m. Eastern Time on November 5.
Davis signed a three-year, $30 million contract with the Bears in 2023 free agency, but he has gone from starting right guard to a liability the team refuses to put on the field less than halfway through his deal. The Bears benched Davis from their lineup in favor of veteran Matt Pryor in Week 3, then left him inactive for Week 6’s game in London.
Fowler wrote trading Davis would require the Bears to cover some of his $8.75 million salary for the season, but he added his “sense is the Bears are comfortable with that.”
Meanwhile, Robinson — a 2022 fifth-round pick — has been unable to crack the Bears’ pass-rushing rotation behind defensive ends Montez Sweat, Darrell Taylor, DeMarcus Walker and fourth-round rookie Austin Booker. The Bears also have Jacob Martin close to coming off the injured reserve list, prompting them to explore trades for Robinson.
“The Bears are also weighing trade options with pass rusher Dominique Robinson, who could use a fresh start elsewhere,” Fowler wrote on October 23. “Teams such as the Cowboys, Cardinals and Commanders are short-handed at pass rusher.”
The Bears’ interest in moving Davis and Robinson should not come as a surprise given their roles — or lack thereof — with the team, but it should also excite the fan base.
The experiment with Davis has long run its course. The Bears signed him thinking he would be a quality veteran who could help strengthen their interior offensive line, but his practice habits, injury issues and lackluster play have forced the team to bury him on the depth chart. Chicago is so unwilling to put Davis on the field that it made him a healthy scratch in Week 6’s win, turning to inexperienced backup Bill Murray instead.
As for Robinson, he has still not played a single snap for the Bears in 2024. While he showed improvement as a pass rusher during this past summer’s training camp, the team has left him inactive on game days in favor of the aforementioned rotation along with Daniel Hardy, who has played 127 special-teams snaps over the first six games.
At this rate, the Bears will cut both Davis and Robinson when they reach the offseason — or perhaps even sooner — so it would be advantageous for them to attempt to find a trade partner for either/both of them. Even if an acquiring team is only willing to give the Bears a late Day 3 selection, something is better than nothing for both players.