When Amari Cooper was drafted to the Oakland Raiders, the Chicago Bears made the obvious move to get Kevin White. The team needed a wide receiver after losing Brandon Marshall in a trade to the New York Jets and White was considered the next best available player on the board. The move gives Jay Cutler a strong weapon to work with as he will officially be the man in the charge next season, but could be losing another offensive threat in the coming days?
According to Adam Schefter of ESPN, the Bears are entertaining offers for tight end Martellus Bennett who is currently a hold out in voluntary minicamps. Bennett is entering the third year of a four-year contract and is set to make $4.9 million in 2015. He is coming off a career-high season with a Pro bowl nod and could be asking for some more money from the Bears. As a result, his name is getting tossed around in trade rumors as the Bears eye more draft picks to help rebuild.
Head coach John Fox addressed the rumors via the Chicago Tribune prior to the first round of the NFL Draft, making it clear that he expected Bennett to be on the team's roster by the end of the draft. The issue is that Fox gave no indication that Bennett was a long-term answer for the Bears which will only fuel speculation over the next two days. On his part, Bennett made it clear that he is not listening to the trade rumors surrounding his name and is simply focused on the season ahead whether it is in Chicago or elsewhere.
"I'm really not paying attention to that kind of stuff. I'm just trying to prepare and have a great season with the Chicago Bears," Bennett said, via the Chicago Tribune. "If something should happen to change that, we'll then I'll have a great season somewhere else."
The Bears have been linked to a lot of trade rumors this offseason and the only one to come true was the deal for Marshall. Chicago did not trade Cutler for Marcus Mariota despite being aggressive in draft deal talks. They have also not seriously inquired about deals for Matt Forte after the running back confirmed he had heard trade talk around his name All of this is normal when a new head coach and general manager step in to a team. Whether they make any roster moves is up in the air at this point.
