Chicago Bears Open Thread Question of the Day: Would you trade the farm for T.J. Watt?

Murmurs across the league suggest that multiple teams are eyeing a potential T.J. Watt trade. Would you pay the price for Watt?

It is the deep offseason, which means that fans are hungry for any morsel of news to latch on to. Consider me your Chef de Cuisine today, and T.J. Watt rumors as your meal.

Are they empty calories? Very likely.

Are they fun and delicious? Yes, they are.

So, in case you haven’t heard, Adam Schefter reported on Monday that “multiple teams have been discussing whether they can trade for Steelers’ standout T.J. Watt, who skipped the team’s most recent minicamp.”

This is very intriguing news for a few reasons. The first of which is that TJ Watt is Elite with a capital E. In 8 seasons, Watt has accumulated 108 sacks, 126 TFLs, 33 FFs, and 5 1st Team All-Pros. He has more sacks, TFLs, and FFs than Myles Garrett during that same time - ELITE!

Second reason why this is intriguing is because there is a distinct need for pass-rushers in the NFC North. The Lions have a recovering Aidan Hutchison and not a whole lot opposite him. The Packers have Rashan Gary and an underperforming Lukas Van Ness. The Bears have Montez Sweat and a lot of young question marks. While the Vikings were still among the best in the league in pressuring the quarterback, they have not had a true #1 pass-rusher since Hunter left for Houston.

So, at the very first blush, the Chicago Bears should be very interested in trading for a player like T.J. Watt. He’s an elite player who has remained relatively durable, which would elevate the Bears' defense to elite status.

However, there is always a price with these types of things. So let’s look into some returns from some comparable trades.

1. 2009: Patriots trade Richard Seymour to the Raiders for 2011 1st Round Pick. Seymour was the same age as Watt at the time of this trade (30) but only had 43 sacks to his name at the time of the trade.
2. 2008: Chiefs trade Jared Allen and a 6th Round Pick to the Vikings for 17th Overall Pick, two 3rd-round picks, and a 6th-round pick. Jared Allen was a rising star in the league having racked up 43 sacks and 14 FFs in his first four seasons.
3. 2018: Raiders trade Khalil Mack, a 2nd-Round Pick, and conditional 5th-Round pick to Bears for two 1st-Round Picks, a 3rd-Round Pick, and a 6th Round Pick. This is obviously the trade that Bears fans will cite anytime a trade for a big pass-rusher is involved. At the time of the trade, Mack had racked up 40.5 sacks across 4 seasons.
4. 2021: Broncos trade Von Miller to Rams for a 2nd-Round and 3rd-Round pick. This trade happened mid-season, after Miller proved he had recovered from an ankle injury. At the time of the trade, Miller (32) had notched 110.5 sacks across 9.5 seasons.

So, what does a...