Alex Bars was easily the best-performing undrafted free agent the Chicago Bears signed this offseason. He looked strong both at guard and tackle in the preseason. This is why it was such a surprise when the team decided to waive him and put him on the practice squad. A move that almost came back to haunt them when the New England Patriots made a push to sign him a few weeks ago. However, Bars chose to decline in favor of staying put and was elevated to the main roster shortly after.
As it turns out, that series of events has suddenly become wrapped up in a wild conspiracy theory. Hub Arkush of Pro Football Weekly, a longtime Bears insider, revealed that the team worked overtime to convince Bars to not sign with the Patriots. How could they possibly have done it? Perhaps with a guarantee they’d raise his pay and put him on the main roster within a short period of time. Sure enough, it happened two weeks later. Conveniently at the same time, Kyle Long went on Injured Reserve.
The conspiracy would have you believe both moves were connected to each other directly.
“The Bears like Bars a lot — so much so that according to one of my sources, they worked hard to convince him to pass on a chance to go to New England and play for Belichick, a week or two before he was activated off the practice squad here.
There is even a conspiracy theory around Lake Forest that one of the main reasons for moving Kyle Long to the injured list was to create a roster space for Bars.”
There were rumors that Long wasn’t happy that the Bears chose to put him on IR. That he felt he could get healthy with some downtime. Instead he was basically shut down for the year. It is certainly a theory that is easy to believe, but also comes with no proof. One could easily call the available evidence circumstantial. Either way, it seems like the Bears do indeed have future plans for Bars. Most experts agreed back in the spring that he would’ve been drafted if not for an untimely injury last season.
He has the look of a starter at guard with his size, power, and strong technique. The Bears might just not feel he’s ready yet. Recovering to 100% from a torn ACL takes a long time and they likely feel keeping him off the field for as long as possible only helps his body continue to heal. With Long’s future up in the air and Rashaad Coward being a free agent in 2020? It’s possible he could end up sliding into that right guard slot next year depending on how he progresses in his development.
