Not many Super Bowl-winning quarterbacks are third-stringers on NFL rosters. But that’s where QB Nick Foles happens to be on the Chicago Bears’ depth chart.
However, the 10-year veteran might not stay there for long, considering how much teams always seem to need a quarterback. One of those teams might be the Indianapolis Colts, whose starter — Carson Wentz — is out indefinitely after suffering a foot injury on Thursday at practice.
Bears coach Matt Nagy is someone who appreciates Foles’ value and wouldn’t be surprised if the Colts — or any other team — come calling for Foles.
“… You’re talking about a Super Bowl MVP and a guy that’s started a lot of games,” Nagy told reporters before practice on Saturday. “He’s had a really interesting career in so many ways that I just think that he deserves that.”
Nagy added that he and Foles have not talked about a potential trade since training camp started.
“I don’t talk to him about that; he doesn’t talk to me about it,” Nagy said. “We just don’t go there because, again, that’s out of our control. He’s worrying about doing everything he can to just be great for us, and that’s what I like about our relationship. He’s happy with where he’s at here and he’s in a good place.”
That place is currently behind starter Andy Dalton and first-round pick Justin Fields. In nine games — seven starts — for the Bears last season, Foles passed for 1,852 yards, 10 touchdowns and eight interceptions while splitting snaps with Mitchell Trubisky, who signed with the Buffalo Bills in the offseason.
The MVP of Super Bowl LII, Foles has played for five NFL teams, including two stints with the Philadelphia Eagles. He has played 67 regular-season games and has gone 28-27 in 55 starts.
Foles, 32, also appears to be reasonably affordable. His salary-cap charge for 2021 is $6.7 million.
Nagy values Foles’ experience and ability but knows snaps might be hard to find. The coach also respects Foles for how he has dealt with a challenging first week of training camp.
“I would say probably 95% of people in Nick’s situation would handle it completely opposite of the way he’s handled it, from the time that I brought him in and told him that he was going be the third-string quarterback,” Nagy said. “And I have to give so much credit to him because he accepted it. He understood it.”
The Colts signed veteran QB Brett Hundley on Saturday. But it remains to be seen if Foles will still be with the Bears before the 2021 NFL season kicks off.
–Field Level Media