Brandon Marshall reunited with Jay Cutler in Chicago
Pro Bowl Wide Receiver Brandon Marshall was traded from the Miami Dolphins to the Chicago Bears in exchange for two 3rd Round draft picks.
It’s not difficult to understand why the Chicago Bears would want Marshall. For each of the past five seasons he has surpassed 1000 yards receiving. Each of those seasons, Marshall has collected a minimum of 80 receptions. Over the past three seasons, no wide receiver for the Bears have amassed 60 receptions in a season, nor have any hit the 1000 yards receiving mark. The move also reunites Brandon Marshall with Jay Cutler, as the two were teammates back in Denver.
The primary question in this situation revolves around why the Miami Dolphins would be willing to trade Brandon Marshall, especially when they’re likely to only draft backup players with the 3rd round draft picks they got in return.
It has been reported at various times in his career Brandon Marshall has been a personality off the field whom some teams might not want in their locker room. Despite that, his athletic ability and penchant for collecting laudable statistics made him one of the reasons why the Dolphins were considered a probable landing spot for highly prized free agent Quarterback Peyton Manning.
Though merely speculation at this point, it is possible that Peyton Manning expressed disinterest in working with Brandon Marshall, and the Dolphins shipped the Pro Bowl caliber wideout to the Bears as a show of good faith that they were willing to do whatever it takes to bring Peyton aboard and make him happy. There’s also the idea that Peyton Manning would want his new team to sign his former Colts teammate Reggie Wayne, which means the Dolphins might’ve needed to clear up some salary cap space to make that possible.
Time will tell why the trade occurred, but if Peyton Manning does not sign with the Miami Dolphins, this deal is going to be a very questionable move by the NFL decision makers in South Beach.
