Talk about awkward.
Two days before training camp officially opens, tight end Greg Olsen is believed to already be in Bourbonnais. But he’s at the center of a unique drama.
His agent Drew Rosenhaus sent out an email at 7:56 p.m. Wednesday, informing NFL general managers and personnel executives that his client was available via trade.
“The Bears have granted me permission to seek a trade for Greg Olsen,” Rosenhaus wrote. “Please let me know if interested.
“Sounds like the Bears will be very reasonable on the compensation in return for Greg.”
But at 8:07, Rosenhaus wrote, “Please disregard my previous email regarding Greg Olsen.”
The emails were first reported by the Tribune early Thursday morning but was also obtained by the Sun-Times.
Know this: the Bears are indeed shopping Olsen.
There were rumors last offseason that the Bears had a trade in place with the New England Patriots.
But this time, there’s no masking the Bears’ intention.
The 31st pick in the 2007 NFL Draft, Olsen has 194 catches for 1,981 yards with 20 touchdowns.
Olsen, though, is set to make $900,000 this season, and he’ll be a free agent next offseason. Known more for his pass-catching, Olsen was lauded by offensive coordinator Mike Martz but not counted on as a major part of the offense, with his catches, yards and touchdowns dropping from 2009. Historically, Martz hasn’t made the tight end a big part of his scheme.
In addition, the Bears are high on Kellen Davis. And while they value Olsen, they may prefer to get a draft pick or another player now instead of risking losing him next offseason without getting anything in return.
Stay tuned as this drama unfolds.
