Chicago Bears: Is Robert Quinn Staying or Leaving?

There are rumors that Chicago Bears edge rusher Robert Quinn wants out. Is that a viable option, or should the team keep him?

The Chicago Bears are in a state of flux. With a new general manager and a new coaching staff, the rebuild officially began. The only thing consistent at the moment is that there is constant change.

One of the changes that was the talk all offseason is the status of edge rusher Robert Quinn.

Last season, Quinn broke the franchise record for sacks in a season. With the Bears rebuilding and trying to move to younger players, Quinn doesn’t seem like a fit. He just turned 32 two weeks ago so he isn’t in the Bears’ future.

CBS Sports’ Jason La Canfora recently wrote about him hearing that Quinn wants out of Chicago.

I continue to hear that Quinn wants out of Chicago – and who could blame him? – and there are a host of interested teams. Bears brass has told everyone he ain’t going anywhere, but they will keep asking and that’s not lost on the veteran defensive end.

One thing we need to keep in mind with La Canfora, though, is that he isn’t really a dependable source. Additionally, he didn’t even have a source to confirm what he said. We have to take what he says with a grain of salt.

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Is parting ways with Quinn a good idea?

If what La Canfora wrote is true, it is understandable. Yes, he had a superb season in 2021. However, the question is if he can repeat it. At his age, what does a successful season look like? If he has 10 sacks, it’s pretty good but almost a 50 percent drop.

Quinn put himself in a position to force his way out and play with a contender. He sees how Khalil Mack now finds himself with the Los Angeles Chargers playing meaningful games. Quinn has only been to two playoffs so he wants to play in at least another one before he retires.

For the Bears, trading Quinn frees up even more salary cap space. As we enter June, trading him now would save the Bears $12.9 million. They also save about $18.2 million in 2023.

With about $97 million available in 2023, the Bears already have the highest cap space in the NFL. Another $18 million really allows the Bears to make an even bigger dent in free agency. This is something Ryan Poles really has to think about.

On the other hand, having Quinn stay around at least in 2022 could help the new guys. Trevis Gipson still has things to learn and Quinn is just the leader to do that. Additionally, rookie Dominique Robinson has a lot of upside, but he’s only played the position for two years. He has a ton of talent but is raw. Quinn could help him and leave a big legacy.

This is a big decision for Poles to make. Does he save a ton of money and help Quinn go to a contender as he did with Mack, or does he keep him around at least for this season so he could help the other players? We’ll see what happens later this offseason.