Chicago Bears: Jimmy Graham shouldn’t feel comfortable

Jimmy Graham still being on the Chicago Bears’ roster is one of the biggest offseason surprises. That could change in a hurry, however.

One of the biggest offseason surprises in 2020 was the Chicago Bears signing tight end and future Hall of Famer Jimmy Graham. He had the credentials but many felt he was over the hill. He couldn’t come up with big seasons despite having the great Aaron Rodgers throwing him passes.

One of the biggest offseason surprises this year was the Bears retaining Graham. Yes, he had a resurgent season. He had 50 catches for 456 yards and eight touchdowns. Pretty good stats, especially considering how bad the Bears’ quarterback play was in 2020.

Despite those numbers, if the Bears parted ways with Graham, they stood to save about $7 million in salary-cap space. Instead, cornerback Kyle Fuller and offensive lineman Charles Leno were let go ahead of Graham.

Graham might feel safe after all the dust settled and he was still a Bear. He shouldn’t feel that way, however. There is still time for him to lose his roster spot.

There are two things that are working against Graham this season. First, the season he had last year could be chalked up to the veteran’s last stand. When great athletes experience decline, they usually have that one good season that reminds people of their former greatness. The 2020 season could have been the one for Graham. Even with an improved quarterback room in 2021, having him repeat his 2020 campaign would be difficult.

Second, in addition to being another year older (he’ll turn 35 this year), he’ll likely lose some snaps to second-year tight end Cole Kmet. If Kmet shows that he’s ready to take over as the main guy, that spells a cut in Graham’s time on the field.

In that case, the Bears probably won’t want to keep an aging, expensive tight end as a backup. They could cut him loose and go after a cheaper, younger option. That way, they’d still have some money left over to pick someone up at another position of need should they need it.

Graham recently spoke about briefly considering retirement, per NBC Sports Chicago:

"Yeah, I certainly did (consider retiring) for a second there…I just want to make sure that I can make it through a season and make it through another playoff run."

That usually doesn’t bode well for a player. If the thought of retirement is in his brain, that means the end is near. Yes, he said it was brief, but the thought is now in his head. Should he start off slow or if Kmet takes a lot of snaps away from him, do those thoughts come again? Will he still be willing to take the punishment, or will he just try to make it to the end of the season healthy?

The Bears recently signed Jake Butt. At this point, he’s likely just a training camp body. If he’s over his injury problems, though, and shows out in camp and in preseason games, could the Bears take a chance with him this season?

In any case, despite being one of the NFL greats, Graham still has to play as if his career is on the line. He needs to play like he’s an undrafted rookie trying to make the team. If not, the decision to retire could be made for him.