Chicago Bears take a flier on former first-round wide receiver

In search of better depth at the position, the Chicago Bears have taken a flier on a former-first round pick wide receiver.

The quarterback situation has taken most of the headlines for the Chicago Bears this preseason, but they’ve added a new potential weapon for whoever starts under center. According to ESPN’s Adam Schefter, per agent Drew Rosenhaus, the Bears have signed wide receiver Breshad Perriman to a one-year deal.

Perriman signed a one-year deal with the Detroit Lions this offseason, with nearly all of a $2.5 million salary fully guaranteed. But he failed to stand out in a wide receiving corp that looks to be the least-proven in the league, and the Lions willingly parted ways. A hip injury was a factor, with one catch and two drops in the preseason finale not helpful.

Bears: Breshad Perriman is a certified journeyman

Perriman was drafted 26th overall in the 2015 draft by the Baltimore Ravens. He missed his entire rookie season due to a knee injury, and after two seasons on the field with the Ravens (27 games) he played 10 games for the Cleveland Browns in 2018 (16 catches for 340 yards).

Perriman landed with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in 2019, and injuries opened up an opportunity for him late in that season on his way to career-highs (36 catches for 645 yards, six touchdowns). He then signed with the New York Jets in 2020, finishing with 30 catches for 505 yards and three touchdowns in 12 games last season. His signing with Detroit this offseason was kind of a fun story, as his father Brett had a solid run as a wide receiver for the Lions during his playing career.

Behind Allen Robinson at wide receiver, the Bears have the promising Darnell Mooney and little else. GM Ryan Pace clearly has a blind spot when it comes to making the right decisions on what receivers to draft, and it’s an imperfect science anyway. So a flier on Perriman is well-warranted for Chicago, it’s just a matter of if he can do enough to stick.