Carson Wentz is trending on Twitter and the Bears are a part of it... so here we are.
Somewhere, rumors of a Wentz trade from the Eagles and the Bears being among the top bidders engulfed Chicago Twitter. Where it started, we're not exactly sure. But here are a pair of notable tweets on it that seem like the origin.
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But let's step back and look at the murky timeline that got us here.
On Wednesday, ESPN's Adam Schefter said Wentz wants out of Philly. On Thursday, the Mike Garafolo and Ian Rapoport of the NFL Network reported teams have begun calling the Eagles about Wentz.
Dan Patrick said on his show no teams have actually called the Eagles about a trade, suggesting the team is trying to jump start a market. He points to the Lions and the eventual Matthew Stafford trade as a blueprint.
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Then Garafolo was quick to push back on Patrick's report and suggestion this was coming from the Eagles because his sources were outside Philly.
And then today, Eagles beat reporter suggested a trade was coming very soon and Colts general manager Chris Ballard acknowledged at least the Colts are "exploring lots of options" but "no trade is going down today."
Eagles reporter Tim McManus also listed the Bears as a possible trade destination for Wentz this morning.
It's created an NFL rumor perfect story. It's the GameStop short squeeze of quarterback rumors.
So where are we?
You can probably rest assured that the Eagles are fielding and even making calls about a Wentz trade.
And it's likely the Bears and Colts were a part of that mix seeing as both teams need a quarterback for 2021 and beyond, despite no legitimate reports the Bears have called Philly. Garafolo and Rapoport due name the Colts as a team that would be interested but don't say they've called.
Bears general manager Ryan Pace, and frankly any other general manger looking for a quarterback, would absolutely call a team with a quarterback on the trade block to see what a team wants in exchange.
It's just due diligence.
Pace would be crazy to not call and see if the asking price is low and high, even if he isn't seriously interested in bringing Wentz to Chicago. Pace can use that information to assess the broader quarterback trade market to assess a good deal and a bad deal. Much like any shopper compares prices at a variety of stores to find the best deal.
And even Bears head coach Matt Nagy said they'll look into anything they can think of and "everything is on the table" on Thursday.
But ultimately, I agree with Brendan here.
The NFL Draft cannot get here soon enough.
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