Former Bears college scout Greg Gabriel gives his opinion as to why the Bears did not trade for Chase Young
Greg Gabriel was a Bears scout for 8 NFL seasons. He clocked a total of 30 years of scouting in the NFL. If anyone has a good idea of what a good player looks like, it would be him.
Gabriel wrote an article for Windy City Gridiron that detailed his opinion as to why the Bears decided not to go after Chase Young.
“The Bears did make a big trade for a defensive end, but not for the player many thought they would be after. The defensive end the Bears traded for was Washington’s Montez Sweat. Sweat, in my opinion, is a much better player than Young.”
Why the Bears backed away from making a deal for Chase Young
Gabriel continues to explain an interaction he had with Fox Sports NFL insider Jay Glazer, which explained why the Bears backed out of the Chase Young sweepstakes.
“Sunday on the Fox Pre-Game show, Jay Glazer reported that the Bears were no longer interested in acquiring Chase Young. Being that Jay and I have been friends going back to his days as a Giants beat reporter, I sent him a text asking him what happened. He replied that the Bears couldn’t get all the pertinent medical information that would make them feel good about making a trade. Thus, they backed out.”
Later on in his article, Gabriel claims that in his opinion, Montez Sweat is the better player between him and Chase Young. Sweat has shown more durability than Young. Sweat has only missed 6 games in his NFL career.
Young suffered a catastrophic knee injury in 2021. The injury cost him the entire 2022 season. That injury leaves his future availability and long term health in question.
Sweat brings consistent production and leadership
Consistent production from the defensive end is a major factor in Sweat’s favor. Gabriel points to this as a major factor as why Sweat was chosen in his article.
“Sweat has had very consistent production ever since he came into the League. In the 67 games he played, he has recorded 35.5 sacks, registered 197 total tackles, and has nine forced fumbles. Not only that, but he has proven to be a solid leader and presence in the locker room. His addition will help the Bears’ anemic pass rush and will also prevent Yannick Ngakoue from being constantly double-teamed on pass downs.”
Sweat’s future with the Bears
To wrap up the article, Gabriel addresses the subject of extending Sweat. Since Sweat is in the final year of his contract, there has been concern Ryan Poles won’t extend him. Greg Gabriel says there is little to back up these concerns.
“There is a concern with the trade and that is Sweat is in the final year of his contract, and unless an extension is done soon, he will become a free agent in March. That said, I feel very confident that before the Bears made the trade, they received assurances from Sweat’s representatives that a deal could be done. If that doesn’t happen, the trade becomes a huge blunder for the Bears Front Office, something they don’t need after the Chase Claypool fiasco.”
If the Bears can extend Sweat and keep him, he can impactful for years to come. Montez Sweat is 27-years-old. Gabriel explains why he has a positive outlook of Sweat’s future with the Bears. “He is just hitting the prime of his career, and getting at least five more strong seasons should not be an issue.”
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