NFL: Is Chicago Bears’ Tight End Greg Olsen on the Move?
Published by Christopher Murphy on September 2, 2010
Article Source: Bleacher Report - Chicago Bears
It seems Jay Cutler is not the only one running in circles on the Chicago Bears. Bears’ management has joined Cutler and decided to run around as well.
Right back to where they started.
Bears camp has attempted to fool the public into believing there is a spot for Greg Olsen in Mike Martz’s system. A friend to Cutler and one of his favorite targets, Olsen was supposedly going to have a spot.
The Bears need Olsen because they lack receiving weapons.
Now it would seem Olsen could be on the move either because there is no place for him or the Bears’ blocking is so bad, the team needs to sacrifice a position for a better blocking tight end.
On Saturday afternoon, the 53-man roster is due and as reported, the Bears have been going around the league to see if the team can get a draft pick for the players about to be cut.
Usual stuff.
However, a league source told Mike Mulligan of the Chicago Sun-Times that Olsen is still available.
Olsen trade talks were sparked in March and a trade seemed to be on the table to send Olsen to the New England Patriots, but nothing solidified. The Patriots went on to draft a tight end in the second and fourth rounds of the draft.
Now, with Chris Williams continuing to struggle, it would seem Williams, the 2008 first-round pick, may cause the trading of Olsen, the 2007 first-round pick.
Bears sure know how to pick them.
Williams, along with the offensive line as a whole, has become so bad that the Bears may have to play veteran tight end Brandon Manumaleuna solely to have any kind of running game and to keep Cutler alive.
All of this would mean no real place for Olsen.
Problem in trading Olsen is the fact the Bears overrate him as being worth a second-to-third-round draft pick rather than his projected value of a fifth-round draft pick. Mix that with the fact Cutler really likes him and you have someone who is hard to move.
Regardless of what plays out, it would seem if Olsen is to stay, which one would assume he will, he will not be used too much in the offensive scheme because of the lack of blocking and the fact Martz is not going to run two tight end sets.
It would seem the phasing out of Olsen has already begun as he was not targeted on one play in the latest preseason game against the Arizona Cardinals.
Something tells me the Bears offensive line may be sidelining more players before this season is over.
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