Bears agree to 1-year deal with WR Victor Cruz
— -- Free agent Victor Cruz has agreed to a one-year deal with the Chicago Bears, the team announced Thursday.?
The veteran wideout confirmed the move in a post on Instagram, saying he's headed to Chicago after seven years with the New York Giants.
The Bears were in need of help at the position after losing Alshon Jeffery to the Philadelphia Eagles?earlier this offseason? via free agency.
Cruz, 30, joined the Giants as an undrafted free agent out of UMass in 2010 and quickly made his mark. He starred on their Super Bowl XLVI-winning team in 2011 and had 303 catches, 4,549 receiving yards and 25 touchdowns during his time with the Giants.
But injuries derailed his career with the Giants, who released him on Feb. 13. They did not make an effort to renegotiate his deal for a second straight season after he caught 39 passes for 586 yards and a touchdown; he had missed most of the previous two years with injuries.
Cruz is 2? years removed from major knee surgery and would have counted for $9.4 million against the Giants' salary cap in 2017. New York freed up $7.5 million in cap space with his release.
His role decreased this past season as rookie Sterling Shepard took his spot in the slot. Cruz spent most of 2016 working on the outside in an unfamiliar position opposite Odell Beckham Jr.
Cruz took a significant pay cut to return to the Giants last season. He still made $5.3 million and wanted to return this offseason to the only professional team he had known.
ESPN's Jordan Raanan contributed to this report.
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