Bears OK safety Harris' agent to explore trade options

Chicago Bears safety Chris Harris has requested a trade after being benched for Sunday's 39-10 win over the Minnesota Vikings.

Harris' agent, Albert Elias, said the Bears have granted him permission to seek a deal and that Harris wants "to help somebody win."

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"I requested a trade, I sure did," Harris told "The Waddle and Silvy Show", via ESPN Chicago. "I don't know if I'll be traded or not. I've definitely requested one, and the trade deadline is tomorrow, so that's a very small window of time, so it's not to say anything is going to be done.

"... And if nothing is done, I'll be here in Chicago for the remainder of this season. If my number gets called again, I'll go out there and ball out and it will be what it is."

Harris, in his second stint with the Bears, was inactive against the Vikings after struggling in a loss at Detroit the previous week. Before that, he missed three games with a hamstring injury.

"Chris will probably tell you, the Detroit game he wasn't 100 percent," coach Lovie Smith said.

He said he simply wanted to shake things up in the secondary and also pointed out that Harris is not a special teams contributor, another reason why he was not in uniform on Sunday night.

"Nobody loses their job so quickly," Smith said. "Your play is based on the production that you have when you're out there. I feel pretty comfortable with the decision I made."

The Associated Press contributed to this report.