Chicago Bears: 5 Underrated targets in 2018 NFL Free Agency
3. Terrelle Pryor, WR
It is not a secret that the Chicago Bears have a need at the wide receiver position. After losing Alshon Jeffery in free agency and Cameron Meredith suffering a torn ACL in the preseason, Chicago went into the 2017 season extremely short-handed at the wide receiver position. Now, Meredith is a restricted free agent while contributors like Kendall Wright, Dontrelle Inman and Josh Bellamy will hit the open market as unrestricted free agents.
This was already a position of weakness for the Bears, and they could easily lose some talent in free agency. Targeting a big-named free agent receiver like Allen Robinson would make some sense, as would attacking the position in the draft. However, the Bears need to search high and low viable wide receivers to pair with Mitch Trubisky. They must attack this need with as many interesting additions as possible.
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Terrelle Pryor is a rare case of a player who was able to successfully transition from quarterback to wide receiver at the NFL level. After playing quarterback for three years with the Oakland Raiders to begin his career, Pryor made the transition to receiver in 2015 with the Cleveland Browns. He became a fantastic weapon for Cleveland in 2016, piling up 77 receptions for 1,007 yards and four touchdowns.
During the 2016 season, Pryor showed fantastic deep speed, strong overall athleticism and a knack for making plays on the ball in the air. Despite his strong season, Pryor did not receive a ton of interest on the open market last season. He eventually signed a one-year, $8 million contract with the Washington Redskins, but he never fit in well with his new team.
Pryor struggled to adapt in Washington and only played in nine games with his new team. He never had a strong rapport with Kirk Cousins. His only season in Washington turned out to be a major disappointment.
Pryor now hits the open market again, and will likely receive even less interest than last offseason. That being said, he still has great size for the position (6-4, 228 pounds) and an impressive overall skill set. The Bears simply need bodies at the wide receiver position and could provide Pryor an opportunity to prove himself once again.
He was a true weapon for the Browns back in 2016 and still has some long-term upside. For a deal that would undoubtedly cost them very little, I would like to see the Bears take a shot on Pryor. He could become a big-time playmaker for the team at an extremely important position of need. If nothing else, Pryor would provide Trubisky with a big receiver who has an expanded catch radius.