FOXBOROUGH, MA - JANUARY 21: Malcolm Butler #21 of the New England Patriots reacts in the fourth quarter during the AFC Championship Game against the Jacksonville Jaguars at Gillette Stadium on January 21, 2018 in Foxborough, Massachusetts. (Photo by Kevin C. Cox/Getty Images)

Chicago Bears: Ryan Pace is more transparent predraft than some think by Parker Hurley

Malcolm Butler was a free agent option that the Chicago Bears had interest in

Dan Pompei of the Athletic got to spend some time with Ryan Pace and pick his brain over the Chicago Bears offseason plan. It was a truly interesting read.

One point that snuck into the article but stood out in many ways was that the team had interest in Malcolm Butler during free agency. He was one of the heavy hitter free agents that Pace was looking to sign.

From the article:

Pace wasn’t looking to hit singles. The top receivers in free agency were Allen Robinson and Sammy Watkins. Pace’s goal was to get one of them. He also made a pitch for Malcolm Butler, one of the top free agent cornerbacks.

We know of course that he did hit on his first objective, Pace brought in Robinson. However, he of course missed on Malcolm Butler.

Still, it is an interesting thought to dissect. The first being that at that point in time, neither Prince Amukamara nor Kyle Fuller were signed.

The first question would be which of those two are walking due to Butler? Who was Pace looking to upgrade over?

On second thought, a team with enough cap space to over spend a bit on Taylor Gabriel, Trey Burton and Cody Parkey may have sacrificed one of those to have tried to bring in all three cornerbacks.

Remember, the team did not sign Bryce Callahan until right before the NFL draft. They had eyes on Minkah Fitzpatrick and Denzel Ward after Fuller and Amukamara signed.

Butler had experience in the slot, and the trio would have been argued with the tops in the league.

Whichever strategy Pace was eyeing, the plan fell through. Interestingly enough Butler chose to play with former Patriots scout Jon Robinson, former Patriots player Mike Vrabel and his former teammate Logan Ryan in Tennessee. The money that Butler got was a bit above market rate as well.

The Bears likely had a price for Butler and a plan, but the Tennessee Titans with connections and extra money took that away. It would have been interesting to see the plan unfold, but now we just have a story to speculate about.