Bears squashing expectations with latest Nick Foles report

The Chicago Bears may try to make a big splash at quarterback this offseason, but the latest report on Nick Foles is surely not encouraging on that front.

Mitch Trubisky is a free agent, and general manager Ryan Pace and head coach Matt Nagy are on dual hot seats. So the Chicago Bears may make a big move for a quarterback this offseason. They linger as a suitor for Deshaun Watson, and Russell Wilson has somehow included them on his list of four preferred trade destinations.

But in true Bears fashion, their ill-conceived trade for Nick Foles last offseason gives them an option already on the roster. They can get under the lower salary cap pretty easily, but a big expenditure might not be viable.

Foles has a $6.7 million cap hit for this year. Cutting him would create $10.3 million dead money hit, so it makes no sense to do that. Trading him (before June 1), if they could find a suitor, would only clear $1.3 million in cap space with the rest in dead money. So there is no salary cap incentive attached to moving on from Foles, even if he ends up in his rightful place as the backup.

Will Nick Foles wind up being the Bears’ starter?

Via the Chicago Sun-Times, Pace has spoken positively about Foles.

“I respect the way he handled a lot of adversity this year, not just for himself in the quarterback room,” Pace said. “He was a leader in the room as a starter or as a backup. And . . . when he was playing, there were some things that, in fairness to him, the offensive line was a little unsettled and the run game wasn’t quite where we wanted it to be.”

Foles played in nine games for the Bears last season, starting seven. He completed 64.7 percent of his passes with 10 touchdowns, eight interceptions and a 80.8 passer rating. Take out Week 3 against Atlanta, when he replaced Trubisky and threw three touchdowns in a comeback win, and he had a 7:7 touchdown-to-interception ratio (5.9 yards per attempt) with a 79.6 passer rating in his seven starts before Trubisky stepped back in. In his ninth appearance, a 41-17 win over the Jacksonville Jaguars in Week 16, Foles took eight snaps and attempted one pass.

The Bears have to be looking to upgrade at quarterback this offseason. But if they can’t get someone that fits that bill, going with Foles as the starter seems to be an option. Talk about a buzz-kill for Bears fans. They’d then be left with the hope someone who’s capable of beating Foles out for the starting job comes aboard in the draft.