Chicago Bears: 6 Reasons They Grab A QB in 2017

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Aug 27, 2016; Chicago, IL, USA; Chicago Bears general manager Ryan Pace looks on from the sidelines before the preseason game against the Kansas City Chiefs at Soldier Field. Mandatory Credit: Kamil Krzaczynski-USA TODAY Sports /

Money

If the Bears had removed Cutler in 2016, they would’ve been saddled with a $19 million dead money hit to their salary cap based on his current contract. It was an ill-advised and unnecessary move at the time. That will change in 2017. Most of the guaranteed money owed to Jay will be gone by then. According to overthecap.com he will command just $2 million in dead money if traded or cut next year. The Bears would gain $14 million in cap space.

While the contract isn’t crippling the teams’ salary structure at this point compared to others, the bottom line is the benefits of moving on from him go up significantly next year. Depending on where the cap ceiling ends up, Chicago could have somewhere around $55 million. Removing Cutler from the equation would push that closer to $70 million. Imagine what Pace might be able to do with that sort of bank at his disposal.

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