Hicks Wants To Retire As A Bear

[soulman]

Hicks ends silence on contract; wants to retire as a Bear

Bears defensive lineman Akiem Hicks meets with kids at SOS Children’s Village on Tuesday. Terrence Antonio James/Chicago Tribune

By Colleen Kane Chicago Tribune

Akiem Hicks had shoes to hand out Tuesday afternoon on the South Side.

Dozens of boxes were stacked in a meeting room for the Chicago Bears defensive lineman to give to children at the SOS Children’s Villages Illinois, a foster-care organization aimed at helping children live in single-family homes with their siblings and full-time foster parents.

The kids, some dressed in Bears T-shirts and others in pretty dresses, waited outside for their chance to meet Hicks and receive their gifts.  But first there was some football to catch up on — months of it, in fact.

Hicks hadn’t spoken to the media at all leading up to his 10th NFL season and sixth with the Bears.

In the middle of the silence, agent Drew Rosenhaus made it known that Hicks wanted a contract extension with the Bears as he entered the final season of his four-year, $48 million deal. That extension didn’t materialize for Hicks, who will be 32 in November, and the only public voices on the situation until Tuesday were those of general manager Ryan Pace and coach Matt Nagy, who both recently praised Hicks’ effort and leadership when asked about an unexplained absence in training camp.

With media invited to Tuesday’s charity event, Hicks finally provided his thoughts beforehand, saying he hopes to play out the rest of his career with the Bears — and will “do everything in my power to do so” — even though there’s no deal to this point.

He said his media silence was based on a desire to focus on celebrating his long-held dream of making it to his 10th year in the league and not on the contract issue.

“No matter what I said and no matter how I phrased my intention on being a Bear for the rest of my career, that’s what I want,” Hicks said. “That’s what I feel at the end of the day is right for me, that I started a piece of my career here and it grew and it blossomed. And I’ve just had so many joy-filled moments as a Chicago Bear, I can’t see myself in another jersey. So for me, less battle about contract situations and really just enjoying this space.”

Hicks said he spent a great deal of energy in the offseason pondering how the situation would play out, thinking about the home he has made in Chicago and the friends he would have to leave. He still thinks about it but said his motivation is based more in enjoying where he is in his career.

“Unfortunately, you don’t get to choose this moment,” he said. “I don’t get to say, ‘This is the date, the end of my contract,’ but it’s upon us and I have to accept that. It’s a present thought in my mind, but it can’t be my main focus in this period of time.”

Hicks, who played his first four seasons with the New Orleans Saints and New England Patriots, revitalized his career when he joined the Bears in 2016 on a two-year, $10 million contract. The Bears jumped to sign him to an extension before his second season, and he totaled 23 sacks, 53 quarterback hits and five forced fumbles over his first three seasons in Chicago and was named to the Pro Bowl in 2018.

Hicks said he didn’t want out of Chicago in March when the Bears cut former All-Pro cornerback Kyle Fuller, though there was speculation to the contrary. He remains one of the defensive leaders and opened the season with three tackles, a half-sack shared with Robert Quinn, two quarterback hits and a roughing-the-passer penalty in Sunday’s loss to the Los Angeles Rams.

He vowed to continue to give maximum effort despite his disappointment, saying his relationship with the Bears is “very professional.” Getting on the field in front of fans also helps push contract concerns out of his mind.

“I’ve been hired to do a job, and the job isn’t done yet,” Hicks said. “So I’m going to continue to play and continue to put my best foot forward and carry myself as the professional that I have been for my entire career.”

A reporter started to press Hicks on whether he could put behind him the Bears not agreeing about his value, but there was an interruption.
The kids had waited long enough, and Hicks — who has worked with SOS since 2017 and is drawn to the sense of community within the organization — was needed to start the shoe giveaway.

“I would love to dodge that question,” Hicks cracked.

The chance for a follow-up is to be determined.

[Madmike90]

If he wants to retire a Bear he is going to need to accept a lot less money...Hicks is still a really good DL but not the dominant one he once was.

[Sugashane]

He may want to, but he deserves better. 

[soulman]

I think it's doable but for how much and for how long will probably be sticking points.

Hicks is 31 years old but if he can stay in shape and remain healthy he still can keep producing for awhile longer.

Much like ARob he's a well respected vet because he shows up every games ready to play and he plays well.  These are the guys you want to keep.

[Epyon]

I don't mind keeping him so long as his contract is structured in such a way we can drop him the moment he starts sucking, and isn't going to waste a ton of cap if/when he gets injured at his age.

I mean, he's still producing...... but let's be honest, he's the EXACT type of aging and productive, but also likely about to fall off a cliff player that can really screw a franchise over if he gets a big deal.

Personally, I think he should prefer to try and grab a "win now" franchise and ring chase. He's still pretty top tier talent wise, and could likely catch on a Superbowl Contender on the cheap, but that's just me.

[abstract_thought]

Unfortunately for Hicks, his position is one of the few where the Bears have depth. I expect Blackson, Tonga, and Edward’s to take that spot.

[soulman]

5 hours ago, abstract_thought said:

Unfortunately for Hicks, his position is one of the few where the Bears have depth. I expect Blackson, Tonga, and Edward’s to take that spot.

Tonga might actually be a better sub for Hicks than for Goldman but for now and maybe later I think they have him slotted as Goldman's #2.

Blackson may be decent depth but he's nowhere near an equal to Hicks and Edwards is more of a 3tech DT pass rusher.

With Hicks even if he's lost a step in his get off he's still an extremely big strong guys whose tough to move off his mark and he's a very experienced savvy player others look to for leadership.  IMHO losing him would be much more detrimental than losing DT would have been.

DL like Hicks aren't always washed up once they hit 30.  To keep him I'd gladly part ways with Quinn and start playing Gipson and Attaochu both of whom are signed for 2022 and fairly cheap at about $4 mil for both.  IMHO Gipson is a kid who has to ascend if we want another good edge guy.

[HuskieBear]

if he would take a deal like danny trevathan - 3/21 with ~14 guaranteed i would do it

[Heinz D.]

I truly think he'll take small money, and stay in Chicago. And that's utterly awesome. I want Hicks around, even as second string.

It would be epic if he retired a Bear. 

[soulman]

1 hour ago, Heinz D. said:

I truly think he'll take small money, and stay in Chicago. And that's utterly awesome. I want Hicks around, even as second string.

It would be epic if he retired a Bear. 

You might not want to be too quick to believe that.  Not with Drew Rosenhaus as his agent.

If Suh has been getting $9 mil a year ya' gotta think that's a floor especially when Hicks has been getting $12 mil per year.

[Heinz D.]

3 minutes ago, soulman said:

You might not want to be too quick to believe that.  Not with Drew Rosenhaus as his agent.

If Suh has been getting $9 mil a year ya' gotta think that's a floor especially when Hicks has been getting $12 mil per year.

You might be right...but Hicks has actually said he'll "do what it takes" to retire a Bear...so I'm going with that. For now. 

[soulman]

1 hour ago, Heinz D. said:

You might be right...but Hicks has actually said he'll "do what it takes" to retire a Bear...so I'm going with that. For now. 

They always say that until they feel they've been lowballed.

ARob was also very firm about wanting to stay in Chicago.  Pace lowballed him too.

[HuskieBear]

1 hour ago, Heinz D. said:

You might be right...but Hicks has actually said he'll "do what it takes" to retire a Bear...so I'm going with that. For now. 

hicks also refused to speak to media during all of training camp and PS, and only just now met with media when he made that statement. if he really wants to stay, actions speak louder than words, but right now, the only thing he has done is talk

[The_Romen]

On 9/16/2021 at 5:50 PM, Epyon said:

I mean, he's still producing...... but let's be honest, he's the EXACT type of aging and productive, but also likely about to fall off a cliff player that can really screw a franchise over if he gets a big deal.

Just think of the Pats and Richard Seymour. A great, but aging vet. Traded him and got some solid picks, meanwhile, they ship him off to Oakland and he fades away.

I love Hicks, but feelings shouldn't hinder the franchise JMO, if we can get something for him, get it.

Same goes for Mack and Jackson. Damn the cap hits, it's all fake. If they're not gonna make a difference and not touch a player while they're down, get em out. We saw it happen in 2014-2017. Bears fans didnt want to show up, even before COVID.

Julius Peppers gave up and they paid him and never got anything for him, don't make that same mistake again.

[WindyCity]

Nichols is more important than Hicks and the defense is already overpaid in 2022.

I wouldn’t even insult Hicks by offering him a contract.