Report: Chicago Bears may let Alshon Jeffery test free agency

According to the NFL Network's Ian Rapoport, there's a chance the Chicago Bears allow free agent wide receiver Alshon Jeffery to test the open market in free agency.

It's long been assumed that the Bears would use the franchise tag on the 26 year old, 2013 pro Bowl wide out, but if we're to believe the latest report, the Bears are still weighing their options with him.

I honestly don't see the upside to this. Jeffery is a young player that has shown the ability to be a legit #1 receiver when healthy. Unless the Bears know something about his health/work ethic that we aren't privy to, I don't understand why they would take a chance and allow Jeffery to test free agency.

With his skill set, he could have multiple teams bidding for his services, and that would only drive the price up even higher. The smart play here is to tag him, and try and hammer out a long term contract.

I could understand this decision if the Bears were up against the salary cap, or if they knew that Kevin White was ready to be a #1 WR, but neither of these things are true.

What do you guys think about this latest report?