Chicago Bears

Simple comparison shows why Bears may regret trading Brandon Marshall

Published Nov. 30, 2015 10:43 a.m. ET

foxsports

During the offseason, the Chicago Bears decided to trade Pro Bowl wide receiver Brandon Marshall to the New York Jets. In exchange, the Bears received a fifth-round pick in this year's draft. They used that pick to select Adrian Amos, a safety out of Penn State.

In order to illustrate the trade's current imbalance, Connor Hughes of the Journal Inquirer compared Marshall's 2015 statistics to those of Amos. The results are not pretty for the Bears.

#Jets traded a fifth-round pick for Brandon Marshall. The Bears picked S Adrian Amos: 48 Tackles, 1 sack. Marshall? 71-931-9 TD (12 games)
— Connor Hughes (@Connor_J_Hughes) November 29, 2015

Those are huge receiving figures, and the Bears have struggled with injuries at wideout. Alshon Jeffery is constantly battled hamstring, calf and groin ailments, while seventh-overall pick Kevin White has been inactive all year with a stress fracture in his left shin. Marshall could have kept this unit afloat.

However, it's still too soon to declare the Bears as the losers of this trade. Marshall is 31 years old, so his future in the NFL is limited. Amos, on the other hand, has developed into a solid starting safety as a rookie. He is only 22 years old and has a whole career in front of him.

Considering the state of the Bears franchise and Marshall's deteriorating relationship with quarterback Jay Cutler, it made sense to deal him away. It hurts to look at Marshall's statistics right now, but Chicago can still emerge as the winner of this trade years down the road. Amos, the team's fifth-round investment, has a bright future head of him.