Quarterback position, Robinson contract loom large for Bears

CHICAGO BEARS (8-9)

UNRESTRICTED FREE AGENTS: WR Allen Robinson (franchise tag), QB Mitchell Trubisky, CB Buster Skrine, WR Cordarrelle Patterson, DL Roy Robertson-Harris, P Pat O’Donnell, TE Demetrius Harris, S Deon Bush, LB Barkevious Mingo, CB Sherrick McManis, DT John Jenkins, S Tashaun Gipson, DT Daniel McCullers, WR Dwayne Harris, OT Germain Ifedi, LS Patrick Scales, CB Artie Burns, DE Brent Urban, S DeAndre Houston-Carson, K Cairo Santos, DE Mario Edwards Jr., OT Jason Spriggs, G Rashaad Coward.

RESTRICTED FREE AGENTS: WR DeAndre Carter, K Eddy Pineiro.

NEEDS: The Bears need to figure out who their starting quarterback will be and resolve what could be a messy situation with Robinson after placing the franchise tag on their star receiver. They seemed to make clear their feelings about Trubisky prior to last season when they acquired Nick Foles from Jacksonville and declined their fifth-year option for 2021 on their once-prized QB. Even so, general manager Ryan Pace wouldn’t rule out anything last week. Trubisky was benched in Week 3 and didn’t return to the lineup until late November. Foles, the Bears’ only quarterback under contract for next season, struggled. Robinson, meanwhile, is coming off one of his best seasons. He caught a career-high 102 passes. And his 1,250 yards were second only to the 1,400 he had with Jacksonville in his 2015 Pro Bowl season. The sides have until July 15 to reach a multi-year deal. Otherwise, he would play next season for $17.8 million assuming he signs.

AVAILABLE SALARY CAP SPACE (approximately): $23 million over.

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