NFL Free Agency Rumors: Bears, Rams Expected to Bid Over Jake Long
By Josh Hill
Jake Long initially wanted a reported $11 million on the open market, but while he’s likely not going to get that he’s drawing serious interest from two teams that might get into a bidding war to acquire his services. According to Mike Garafolo of USA Today, the Chicago Bears and St. Louis Rams are believed to be among the teams most interested in signing Long once free agency opens on Tuesday.
It's been relatively quiet on the Long front. Bears and Rams believed to be among the most interested. We'll see.
— Mike Garafolo (@MikeGarafolo) March 11, 2013
The Bears offensive line was the subject of much ridicule and frustration last season from both the Chicago sports media and Jay Cutler. It’s been long believed that the Bears wold spend the offseason trying to plug the holes and Jake Long is one of the better options on the market. The Rams also have a sinkhole at left tackle and adding Long jives with their agenda to protect Sam Bradford in the long term.
Injury has become a big concern in Long’s career and while he hasn’t been a total draft bust, he’s not developed into the elite left tackle he was looking like early in his career. Still, Long is leaps and bounds better than most tackles in the NFL and the experience he brings could benefit the Bears line as a whole.
The $11 million mark Long set for himself is a pipe dream at best, but it does appear two teams may enter into a bidding war to acquire him. Jason Cole from Yahoo! Sports reports that the Chargers are interested in Long as well, but if he doesn’t hear numbers he likes, there is still a possibility that Long could return to the Dolphins with a team friendly deal.