This Bears-Panthers Trade for Curtis Samuel Could Actually Work
By Jerry Trotta
The Carolina Panthers made an adequate, though not entirely necessary, addition at wide receiver this week when they inked free agent Robby Anderson to a two-year, $20 million deal.
Head coach Matt Rhule will be reunited with his former Temple star, but Carolina will now have trouble feeding three skilled receivers -- DJ Moore, Curtis Samuel, and Anderson -- on top of peppering running back Christian McCaffrey with 20-plus touches per game.
In this instance, it wouldn't be shocking to see Samuel as the odd man out. The Panthers are rumored to be entertaining offers for the 23-year-old speedster. If general manager Marty Hurney intends to shop Samuel, the Chicago Bears have no reason not to get on the phone and make an offer.
With D.J. Moore and now Robby Anderson in Carolina, that could leave Curtis Samuel as the odd man out. He’d have a nice trade market if he were made available. Still a talented player.
— Jordan Reid (@JReidNFL) March 24, 2020
What makes the former Ohio State stud so enticing in trade talks is the fact that teams could scoop him up for nothing more than a third- or fourth-round draft pick. Luckily for GM Ryan pace, the Bears have a plethora of mid-round selections in 2020.
Chicago could keep things straightforward and simply offload its fourth-round (No. 129 overall) pick. That should be enough to get a deal done here. If not, Pace could look to trade his fifth (No. 163) and last pick in the seventh round (No. 233).
Would imagine Curtis Samuel is on the block with the Robby Anderson acquisition, or at least the Panthers would entertain an offer. Extremely interesting option for pretty much every team.
— Benjamin Solak (@BenjaminSolak) March 24, 2020
The Bears weren't planning on making noise in this year's draft anyway. Why not unload one or two mid-to-late round draft picks for a wideout in Samuel that would slot in as the team's No. 2 behind Allen Robinson?