Trevor Siemian Now No. 2

Bears GM Ryan Poles at the owners meetings told reporters Trevor Siemian is the backup now at QB for the Bears and he's looking to trade Nick Foles.

Among the moves ahead for the Bears in free agency could be someone to replace the one they hoped to get when they couldn't sign Ryan Bates after Buffalo matched the offer sheet for the fourth-year guard.

One other which figures to happen at some point in the offseason is the departure of backup quarterback Nick Foles.

Last week after the Bears had signed former Northwestern quarterback Trevor Siemian, NFL Network reported GM Ryan Poles was shopping Foles around for a trade.

"Nothing has popped up right now, but we're working on it," Poles told reporters in Palm Beach, Fla. at the owner meetings on Monday. "Hopefully something pops up."

Foles' departure seemed imminent despite the fact the Bears will be taking on more dead cap space when he leaves. The rebuild has become all about getting rid of salaries and players who don't fit the future, and Foles isn't a fit.

In fact, at the owner meetings, Poles admitted Siemian is now the backup to Justin Fields. It's not hard to see why as a quarterback with more mobility is necessary.

"In this offense, I think he's a better fit," Poles said.

There's no denying Foles' experience advantage, considering he was a Super Bowl MVP in Philadelphia.

However, Poles doesn't discount Siemian's experience, either.

"In terms of a guy who has been behind Peyton (Manning) and (Drew) Brees, there's also a wealth of knowledge he can bring to Justin," Poles told reporters.

Siemian was a seventh-round pick by Denver in 2015 and got into one game for one play on the season, as the Broncos won the Super Bowl.

He then bcame starter in 2016 and led the Broncos to an 8-6 record, then 5-5 the next year, before going to the Jets. He was in Tennessee in 2020 but was on the practice squad, and then came to the Saints in late season 2020.

So his actual time around Brees was very limited, just a few months late in the 2020 season when they went on to play the Bears in the playoffs.

Siemian was with the Saints last camp, was released, then brought back as Jameis Winston suffered a torn ACL and MCL, while Taysom Hill had a concussion and foot injury. Siemian made four starts and the Saints lost all of them.

Behind Siemian and Foles, the Bears have former Virginia Tech quarterback Ryan Willis.

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