Chicago Bears: 3 Players who won’t be back in 2021

Chicago Bears cut candidate No. 2: Jimmy Graham, TE

One area in which the Chicago Bears greatly improved on offense was at tight end. In 2019, the unit combined for 46 catches for 416 yards and two touchdowns. In 2020, those numbers went up to 85 catches, 744 yards and 10 touchdowns.

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Jimmy Graham eclipsed 2019 tight ends totals all by himself. He had 50 catches for 456 yards and eight touchdowns. Despite that, he should be a good cut candidate.

Yes, Graham had a very good season, but he has a lot of tread on him. He’s played for 11 seasons and his body has taken a beating in those years.

Also, the Bears have Graham’s replacement on the roster. They selected Cole Kmet with their first of two second-round picks in last year’s draft.

Kmet had 28 catches for 243 yards and two touchdowns for the season. He came on strong as the season progressed. After the Bears’ Week 9 game against the Tennessee Titans in which he wasn’t targeted at all, he had just six catches for just 79 yards and a touchdown.

The coaches involved Kmet more in the offense and he responded. They should now feel confident that he’s ready to take over the top tight end spot in 2021.

Cutting Graham also saves the Bears a good chunk of money. By parting ways with him, the Bears save $7 million. Again, this is a nice amount of money for a cash-strapped team like the Bears.

Having as good of a season as he had in 2020, Graham answered a lot of critics. Will he be able to do it again, though? For the Bears, that question has to be answered by another team.