Chicago Bears have ‘strong’ chance at keeping Kelvin Hayden
Chicago Bears cornerback Kelvin Hayden (24) during the second quarter at Soldier Field. Mandatory Credit: Rob Grabowski-USA TODAY Sports
The Chicago Bears offseason will undoubtedly include major upgrades at defensive tackle and in the secondary, especially with Henry Melton and Charles Tillman (easily the top two players on two awful units) set to hit free agency. Melton could be retained, but it looks like Tillman will likely head out, which means that the Bears would probably like to keep some depth at corner. It looks like nickel corner Kelvin Hayden will be a part of that depth, as a league source tells Michael C. Wright of ESPN Chicago that there is a “strong” chance that Hayden will be re-signed by the team.
The 30-year-old tore his hamstring before the 2013 season, so the 2012 season was Hayden’s only one with the Bears organization. He isn’t anything more than a veteran, depth corner in this league and is a nickel corner at best. He wasn’t terrible in 2012 in his 16 games with the Bears, but he wasn’t exactly good either and finished the season with 37 tackles and five passes defended.
Hayden’s best season came in 2008 when he defended 12 passes and picked off three as a member of the Indianapolis Colts, but he’ll never be as good as he was that year. If the Bears do re-sign him, then he would only be retained on a one-year deal as a veteran to bring some stability to the depth of the position. They would still need to find an adequate starter opposite of Tim Jennings, who was wisely re-signed earlier.