Milton Waddams
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http://www.chicagofootball.com/2015/01/05/hub-arkush-chicago-bears-cant-afford-to-keep-brandon-marshall/ami5l7j/
Depending on whose analysis of Brandon Marshall's contract you believe, Marshall may be a lot less expensive than Jay Cutler to get rid of, and his departure would serve the Bears a great deal better than Cutler's.
Cutler is certainly overpaid and overrated as a quarterback, and he will never be voted Mr. Congeniality by his teammates, but he does have his supporters, and he's not a problem in the locker room.
I'm sure there are Bears players who are envious or jealous or both of Cutler for his contract and A-list lifestyle, but Cutler actually avoids the spotlight rather than hogging it, and there doesn't seem to be any pocket of dissent or dislike among teammates who would just as soon see him gone.
On the other hand, when it comes to Marshall, more than a few of his teammates would gladly kick in for his bus ticket out of town.
How will we know whether the Bears get it right in their hires of a new general manager and head coach?
If one of their first official moves isn't a trade or the release of Marshall, you can assume the Bears are in trouble again.
Marshall is one of the three or four best wide receivers in football, no question about that.
So how come in nine seasons and with five Pro Bowl selections Marshall never has appeared in a playoff game and both the Broncos and Dolphins couldn't wait to get him out of their huddles and locker rooms?
The answer is because he is a nightmare off the field who spends almost all of his time making sure the spotlight is on him and no one else.
One Bears veteran described Marshall's presence as exhausting.
Another player told me he didn't think the locker room problems were as serious as the media has painted them, but he did think coach Marc Trestman and his assistants' biggest mistake in getting control of the room was they were afraid of trying to handle Marshall.
How are you supposed to coach a player or trust a teammate when you never know what he's going to say or do next?
Then there's the question of production.
Marshall will be 31 in March as he heads into his 10th NFL season, but he is a phenomenal athlete who always seems to keep himself in top shape.
Before 2014, his worst season since his rookie campaign with 61 catches for 721 yards, Marshall never had missed more than two games in a seasons, and he had a string of 65 consecutive starts before missing the last three games of the season. A gimpy ankle in at least three or four other games he did play in also limited Marshall.
It is reasonable to assume Marshall is capable of bouncing back physically for another big season or two.
But is all the selfishness and distraction he brings with him worth it for a team desperate for a new start and a breath of fresh air in the locker room?
Overthecap.com is one of several reputable websites that track NFL player contracts, and it describes Marshall's extension he received from general manager Phil Emery in April as a $30 million deal with a $7.5 million signing bonus and the 2014 and 2015 base salaries guaranteed at $7.3 million and $7.5 million.
But it says Marshall's 2015 salary is only guaranteed if he's still on the roster March 13.
Should the Bears release Marshall before March 13, they will owe him nothing, but they will take a $5.6 million cap hit.
Certainly the Bears could try to trade Marshall, but what they'll find is a bare market not at all to their liking.
Knowing what Marshall's reign of narcissism has just done to Trestman and Emery, what NFL exec in his right mind is going to deal for him?
The biggest question facing the next GM and head coach of the Bears won't be how can they afford to cut Marshall, it will be how can they afford to keep him?
Depending on whose analysis of Brandon Marshall's contract you believe, Marshall may be a lot less expensive than Jay Cutler to get rid of, and his departure would serve the Bears a great deal better than Cutler's.
Cutler is certainly overpaid and overrated as a quarterback, and he will never be voted Mr. Congeniality by his teammates, but he does have his supporters, and he's not a problem in the locker room.
I'm sure there are Bears players who are envious or jealous or both of Cutler for his contract and A-list lifestyle, but Cutler actually avoids the spotlight rather than hogging it, and there doesn't seem to be any pocket of dissent or dislike among teammates who would just as soon see him gone.
On the other hand, when it comes to Marshall, more than a few of his teammates would gladly kick in for his bus ticket out of town.
How will we know whether the Bears get it right in their hires of a new general manager and head coach?
If one of their first official moves isn't a trade or the release of Marshall, you can assume the Bears are in trouble again.
Marshall is one of the three or four best wide receivers in football, no question about that.
So how come in nine seasons and with five Pro Bowl selections Marshall never has appeared in a playoff game and both the Broncos and Dolphins couldn't wait to get him out of their huddles and locker rooms?
The answer is because he is a nightmare off the field who spends almost all of his time making sure the spotlight is on him and no one else.
One Bears veteran described Marshall's presence as exhausting.
Another player told me he didn't think the locker room problems were as serious as the media has painted them, but he did think coach Marc Trestman and his assistants' biggest mistake in getting control of the room was they were afraid of trying to handle Marshall.
How are you supposed to coach a player or trust a teammate when you never know what he's going to say or do next?
Then there's the question of production.
Marshall will be 31 in March as he heads into his 10th NFL season, but he is a phenomenal athlete who always seems to keep himself in top shape.
Before 2014, his worst season since his rookie campaign with 61 catches for 721 yards, Marshall never had missed more than two games in a seasons, and he had a string of 65 consecutive starts before missing the last three games of the season. A gimpy ankle in at least three or four other games he did play in also limited Marshall.
It is reasonable to assume Marshall is capable of bouncing back physically for another big season or two.
But is all the selfishness and distraction he brings with him worth it for a team desperate for a new start and a breath of fresh air in the locker room?
Overthecap.com is one of several reputable websites that track NFL player contracts, and it describes Marshall's extension he received from general manager Phil Emery in April as a $30 million deal with a $7.5 million signing bonus and the 2014 and 2015 base salaries guaranteed at $7.3 million and $7.5 million.
But it says Marshall's 2015 salary is only guaranteed if he's still on the roster March 13.
Should the Bears release Marshall before March 13, they will owe him nothing, but they will take a $5.6 million cap hit.
Certainly the Bears could try to trade Marshall, but what they'll find is a bare market not at all to their liking.
Knowing what Marshall's reign of narcissism has just done to Trestman and Emery, what NFL exec in his right mind is going to deal for him?
The biggest question facing the next GM and head coach of the Bears won't be how can they afford to cut Marshall, it will be how can they afford to keep him?
