The Bears signed Mike Glennon to a $14-million contract, and that's the move which got the most attention -- a sizable deal for a quarterback who hasn't played the last two seasons. And they are apparently paying Markus Wheaton $6 million for this season. But I think the Bears have done some good in the last week, too, and that the Glennon move has been criticized too much.
In the first place, as we've talked about previously, Glennon had a credible rookie season for Tampa Bay. It was a little suspect when the team signed Josh McCown after that season and installed him as the starter, a move proven flawed when McCown naturally got injured. No. 1 overall pick Jameis Winston taking over a year later was understandable, but Glennon didn't do much to lose the job in either season.
If Glennon proves a poor starter, Chicago can move on a year from now without much penalty, unlike say the deal the Texans gave Brock Osweiler. And if Glennon is a good starter, Chicago's gamble will have paid off.
But also, the Bears have made some low-profile moves that could work out, like adding Kendall Wright over the weekend. Wright played for Bears coordinator Dowell Loggains in Tennessee and had his best season for him, a 94-catch, 1,079-yard season in 2013. He hasn't returned to those heights in recent years, with injuries and quarterbacking factors.
They took a flier on Wheaton, for too much probably, and it's less likely to pan out, but he's an option if Kevin White doesn't emerge. With Cameron Meredith, White, Wright and Wheaton, there are options at wideout.
Chicago has also remade its secondary by adding former Cardinal Marcus Cooper, Jaguar Prince Amukamara and Texan Quintin Demps.
Looking over the free agent moves from a year ago, it seems like teams that made more moves -- rather than the bigger, splashier moves -- were the ones that benefited the most. The Giants, the Raiders, the Titans; those teams made a series of moves, increasing their odds of hitting on one or two of them. The teams that made one big, high-profile signing seemed more likely to go bust.
Will be tough for Chicago to beat out Green Bay, perhaps, in the NFC North, but I am not going to rule out them being competitive in 2017.
--Andy Richardson