Jimmy Graham considered retirement; Bears wanted TE to return

Following the Bears’ one-sided playoff loss to the Saints, Jimmy Graham debated stepping away from football after 11 NFL seasons. Bears decision-makers intervened to convince him to stay.

The veteran tight end briefly considered retirement, but Matt Nagy and GM Ryan Pace persuaded him to return, Adam Jahns of The Athletic tweets. Although Graham did not sound like he needed too much convincing to come back, the Bears still have the 34-year-old target in their plans.

Given a two-year deal worth $16M (to the surprise of many) in March 2020, Graham helped a Bears team that had swung and missed on a few tight ends during the Pace regime. He caught 50 passes for 476 yards and eight touchdowns — his most TDs since 2017. The 6-foot-7 tight end added a score in the Bears’ playoff loss. While Graham is past his prime, he could well help Andy Dalton and Justin Fields as an auxiliary weapon.

The four-time Pro Bowler is due a $6.9M base salary, and his cap number spikes to $10M in 2021. Only Zach Ertz, whom the Eagles are expected to jettison, has a higher 2021 cap number ($12.7M) among tight ends. The Bears also used a second-round pick on Cole Kmet last year. Nevertheless, Graham appears in line to stay on as one of Allen Robinson‘s aerial sidekicks this coming season.