Bears place soon-to-be free agent Alshon

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's injury-plagued season is over. Fittingly, it'll end on injured reserve.The latest from SportsLineThe placed Jeffery on IR on Wednesday, four days before their season finale against the Lions. And that means Jeffery may have played his last game for the Bears.Jeffery, selected in the second round of the 2012 NFL Draft, is now scheduled to become a free agent for the first time in his career. Mike Moustakas Jersey  He'll be desired by any and every team needing a playmaking, game-changing wide receiver. Take a look at the --he's leading the pack by a wide margin.But Jeffery's contract year didn't go as expected. Jeffery caught 54 pa ses for 807 yards and four touchdowns. The reason his numbers dipped after his back-to-back 1,000-yard seasons in 2013 and 2014 are entirely related to his injury woes.  Jeffery played in just nine games in 2015. If you followed the Bears at all, you'll know that he showed up on the weekly injury report seemingly every week. Seriously, it was nearly every week.WR Alshon Jeffery was not listed on the Bears injury report today. First time since Nov. 11 that's been the case. Rich Campbell (@Rich_Campbell) The strange part about Jeffery's injuries is that they were never serious knocks. Instead, they were nagging strains to his hamstring, calf, groin -- you name it. Soft ti sue injuries prevented Jeffery from wreaking havoc all season long.Interestingly enough, quarterback might have recently taken a veiled shot at Jeffery."A lot of those soft ti sue injuries I put on the players," said Jay Cutler. "You've got to take care of yourself when you leave Halas ." Zach Zaidman  Wily Peralta Jersey (@ZachZaidman) So, now what? Where does that leave Jeffery and the rebuilding Bears?  After a disappointing season that should have the Bears Jorge Soler Jersey  questioning his durability, Jeffery probably won't be able to secure a loaded long-term deal from Chicago. There's a good chance another team would open up their checkbook to sign the 25-year-old playmaker for the long haul, but the Bears probably won't let it come to that.The most logical answer seems to be the franchise tag.Now that his year is done, Bears window to use the franchise tag on Alshon Jeffery, if they so choose, opens Feb. 22 and closes March 7. Kevin Fishbain (@kfishbain)  Worst case scenario for Alshon Jeffery should be a franchise tag. WR number projects to $14.471M with a $153.4M salary cap. Joel Corry (@corryjoel) When Jeffery is on the field, he gives the Bears' offense an entirely different dimension. Despite mi sing a large chunk of the season, Jeffery still leads the team in receptions, targets, and receiving yards. He averaged 89.7 yards per game -- that's the eighth highest average in the league.Here's a quick sample of his work:Alshon Jeffery is good at playing profe sional football.  NFL (@NFL) Even when he's not catching Jason Vargas Jersey  pa ses, Jeffery forces opposing defenses to roll coverage his way. That'll be important for 2015 first-round pick Kevin White, a burner who's never played against an NFL defense due to a season-ending shin injury. Furthermore, the Bears can't let Jeffery walk because they have no idea what they have in White.Then, there's Cutler. Barring an unexpected move by general manager Ryan Pace, Cutler figures to quarterback the Bears in 2016. Despite being forced to throw to a myriad of unproven receivers, Cutler put together perhaps the best season of his career, lowering his interception rate to 1.7 percent (a career low) and raising his pa ser rating to 92.8 (a career  Burch Smith Jersey high).Cutler's improved his accuracy this season, but it's still not his strength, which makes Jeffery the perfect receiver to pair with Cutler. Similar to , who's turned into a halfway decent quarterback this season, Jeffery rescues errant throws and jump balls.When you get Alshon Jeffery back on the field, just launch it 45 yards and watch him make a play.  NFL (@NFL) In the end, it makes no sense for the Bears to let Jeffery walk away. The Bears, as previously mentioned, are attempting to rebuild. To succe sfully do that, they need good young players. Jeffery is good and he's young.