DT IMO is a bigger need than DE. One may argue that Sweat is good bordering on AP. Last season Hendrickson had 4 sacks in 4 games then was out. Crosby had 10 sacks in 15 games then was out. In the NFCN Hutchinson had 14.5 sacks; Parsons had 12.5 in 14 games.
Sweat had 10 sacks in 17 games while holding up vs run.
Now, he’s not in the S-tier, but 10 sacks ain’t shabby.
Austin Booker looks great at times, though he definitely needs to clean up his run d.
Neither are premium, but they’re not terrible.
However, at DT, do the Bears roster anyone with the production of Sweat or the upside of Booker?
Grady Jarrett looked old and INJed. Gervon Dexter is wildly inconsistent and may not even get a 2nd contract. Shemar Turner was the only DT who showed promise, but he seemed more effective at DE and is coming off an INJ. The rest are JAGs.
In addition, Allen’s philo is to stop the run by setting the edges while having 3Ts disrupt the inside. Once the O can’t run and needs to throw, then he gets exotic with his blitzes and packages.
But if Allen has DEs who can’t set the edge, nor 3Ts to disrupt the QB – well – we get the ’25 D which would’ve been almost Dallas awful if not for the TOs [never forget the 9ers just dicing them up at will].
The problem is that great DTs are even harder to come by than great DEs since teams know their value.
Poles understandably couldn’t get one in FA. Some speculate that Giant’s Dexter Lawrence could still be target – but one must wonder if his down year is an anomaly or a trend. It’s not as if the Gmen are broke – why aren’t they extending him if he’s so good?
Philly may unload Jalen Carter as well, but if Poles passed on him the 1st time around, hard to imagine he’s going to trade for PLUS pay him now.
It gets worse for Bears as this draft class is filled with iffy DTs, none more controversial than Peter Woods. Then other DTs like Kayden McDonald [6’2, 326], Christen Miller [6’4, 321] and Caleb Banks [6’6, 327] aren’t exactly pass rushers, nor fit the Allen 3T mold. Would Allen change his MO for the biggens?
All of which leaves the Bears in a somewhat tricky DT situation which will take some skill and luck to solve.
Here’s a good take on the DT class.
Chris Simms will anaylyze his Top 5 DTs Monday morning.
Emmanuel McNeil-Warren is gaining a lot of buzz. Some even grade him ahead of Oregon Duck [S] Dillon Thieneman.
“EMW” is yuge. Nearly 6’4. 200+ Forced 9 fumbles [Peanut Punch!]. Plays deep. In the box. Ran a 4.52. Rangy. Can cover TEs. The obvious comp is Kam Chancellor.
Naturally, I’d prefer Dline.
This class is deep at Corner and Edge, but a Cover Corner only eliminates ONE WR; a pass rush eliminates ALL of them – Trey Wingo
Once more this comes down to the forever debate of need-v-BPA.
Who improves the Bears more? an Alex Brown DE or a Kam at S?
Some talk about the Bears trading back esp if a prospect like DE Zion Young falls. Young is graded by many in the the 40s, so drafting him at #25 may not be maximizing value. As such, a trade down could be viable.
In the ’25 draft, The Texans traded back, and this is what it looked like:
In exchange for No. 25 overall, Houston will receive No. 34 in the second round, No. 99 in the third round, and a 2026 third-round pick.
I don’t know if QB Ty Simpson will tempt a team to move up, but needless to say, I’d be for it. If picks 25-45 are roughly equal, may as well get more picks.
Growing up is confusing enough, but it’s even more of a clusterfuck when you get contradictory advice. We often rely on folksy sayings, time proven proverbs and maxims especially when one doesn’t have a dad [like me]. You can probably finish these:
“Bird in the hand…”, “Devil finds work…”, “A penny saved…”All work and no play…”
“Measure twice cut once” – Lincoln.
One of my faves.
But sometimes you get conflicting proverbs:
“He who hesitates loses.” “Look before you leap.”
OK. So which is it? Well, both are in/correct aren’t they? Plenty of evidence for either cases. One learns in life that, unlike football, no playbook exists, so you gotta decide, often in a split second, which to roll with.
Aristotle said as much. “You can’t make someone wise.” Seems like the last case a philosopher should write, but that’s essentially what he expressed. He advocated The Golden Mean: Making the right decision involves acting at the right time, towards the right people, for the right purpose, and in the right way.
Student, “Follow up question, Prof A… how do we discern that?”
Aristotle, “Ultimately, that’s up to YOU.”
In other words, “You can lead a horse to water…”
In literature [and now films] the ‘hero’ is often presented with a choice:
1. Stay home. Think about your family, safety and happiness. A woman usually presents this case [think Adrian in “Rocky IV” – “You can’t win!”]. 2.Take a chance. Set off! Sometimes an elderly ‘wise’ man spurs this on like Obi Wan to Luke or guides the neophyte [up to a point] like Virgil in Dante’s “Paradise Lost”.
“Call to adventure“. It’s a Jungian trope that is in nearly every movie.
What the hell are you babbling on about, Butch? Gimme football!
Well young grass-hoppa, this IS about football, the Bears and Poles.
See, Poles thus far has acted prudently. He hasn’t splurged like the Raiders or leveraged the Bears’ future, but he also hasn’t been completely frigid in FA like the Puke during the Rodgers-Favre era.
Poles has taken the middle road. When his Nissan broke down, he didn’t hit the German dealership. He took a bus to his local Carmax and purchased a newer Camry.
Now, that could work. Maybe he’s saving his pennies for some secret target we’re not privy to. Or maybe Booker suddenly turns into Richard Dent, or Benedet’s arms grow 2 inches, or Motivated Dayo Mack-Attacks the league…I suppose anything’s possible. It certainly appears Poles is banking on prior bets to finally pay.
This all leaves us sorta…meh, right?
Maybe lit and flicks have conditioned us so thoroughly that we no longer can sit on our hands; spectators get fidgety . We WANT Achilles to go to Troy. We WANT Rocky to fight Drago. We WANT Luke to fly to the stars.
We WANT a Crosby, Garrett, or Hendrickson.
Now, going bold doesn’t always work out. If “Grinder” represents the extreme of caution, “Worm” represents the other spectrum of recklessness.
Jerry “Glitchy” Angelo went bold and signed Cutler.
Ryan Pace went bold and gave up the kitchen sink for Mack.
We all remember the Herschel Walker Trade and the Ditka-Ricky Williams marriage. Heck, The Commandos’ MO basically the last 40 years has been to Albert Haynesworth it.
Still, at SOME point, you gotta take your shot.
A GM certainly can’t be “Worm”, but being “Grinder” is death by a thousand papercuts.
Whether it’s literature, movies, or life, a person rarely achieves anything staying on the couch.
“Well-behaved women seldom make history.” – Laurel Thatcher Ulrich
Perhaps the most frustrating part for fans is that we MUST trust Poles’ to ‘decide on the right player, in the right way, at the right time.’ Like lowly peasants, we have no choice but to back whatever king is on the throne, whether he be just, dumb or mad. Still, that’s a TALL ask given Poles’ history. Patience is thinning especially for one who believes this team can truly push for a SB.
It’s a shame the old reg Buttonshoes didn’t make it over here. While everyone thought he was a bitter cynic and unshakable pessimist, he wasn’t really wrong. Didn’t make him the most popular guy in a blogasphere full of homers, but he was mostly correct about Lovie, Emery, Trestman, Sweaty Teddy, and his #1 enemy whom he hated with the heat of a thousand supernovas – the McCaskeys.
So, in his honor, let’s take the skeptical tour of Ryan Poles’ FA
The Bears are a WORSE team now post-FA ’26.
Why? Glad you asked. Brisker is gone. His backup [coming off INJ] is now the starter. Wright is gone. Stevenson, who was benched for Wright, is now CB2. Trapilo is down [for who knows how long]. TWO benched backups [in Benedet and Braxton] are now going to fight to be the starter.
That’s 3 backups now starting.
Byard, while old, is likely still better than Cobe Bryant. Byard lead the league in INTs with 7. That’s BETTER than ‘lockdown’ CBs like Jayce Horn [Second with 5].To put that in perspective, Mike Brown in that magical 2000 season racked up 5 INTs. Byard also never missed games; however, Bryant is no chump. He had 5 INTs last season, and is a versatile, smart, aggressive leader on a SB winning team. So, let’s be generous and call it a wash.
Nickel CB will be Mr. Glass, I mean, Spider-Man Gordon, but common.
We all know he’s going to miss half the season. Last year Bears signed CJ Gardner Johnson off the street, and he delivered. It could be argued he saved 2 games. In 10 games he had 2 INTs, 1 FF, 3 sacks, 5 QB hits, and 51 tackles. Not shabby. Like Wright, he struggled mightily in coverage, but will CJ’s replacement [Cam Lewis] impact wins like him?
On offense, I give Poles a slight pass. I don’t know if Dalman‘s retirement shocked him like us, but isn’t vetting in the job description of an NFL GM? Maybe that’s why other GMs passed on Dalman.
Trapilo getting INJed late season was another kick in the nads out of Poles’ control.
Nonetheless, results in the same. LT and C now are downgraded with Benedet and Bradbury. How do I know this? Because on Earth 2 Trapilo and Dalman are returning healthy and willing.
Both Edwards and Dayo [motivated or not] are coming off INJ-plagued ’25 campaigns. Unfortunately, they’re also “starters.”
Last yr WR1-DJ; WR2-Rome; WR3-Burden
This year Rome [who drops at least 2 per game and is terrible at the one thing he was drafted for – contested catches] is WR1, while our WR3 is Kalif Raymond; no matter how optimistic you are, you can’t convince me that Raymond is a superior WR3 than Burden. Of course, one can argue that All Day Jadhae is the WR3, but hey, he was our WR4 last year.
Another little talked about ’26 FA factor to consider which I’m sure ButtonShoes would love.
The fact that the McCaskeys, on top of being imbeciles, are cash poor in an existential stadium struggle which may sap their NFL mojo. Our old friend Data asserts as much, and he’s not alone.
Schefter just straight said the Bears aren't going after Crosby because they don't have the cash. Not cap space, cash.
If you can't afford to run an NFL team, sell the damn team. Bears nuking a contention window because they can't afford to spend what it takes. https://t.co/4wXYFWPxbT
Well, if Buttonshoes was the eternal pessimist, his yang was the eternal [Bears] optimist LCD. He was so optimistic, he even truly pushed that the Bears should build around Fields and pass on Caleb!
#DaHaul
A lesson for all, but I digress…
An optimist would spin it like this.
Poles isn’t so much cooking as simmering. He’s getting everything prepped and marinated, not over committing two 1sts for Crosby, or $100M to Hendrickson – heck, not even a measly 3rd for DT Osa Odighizuwa.
Slow and steady, like the turtle.
Jarrett was INJed last year, performing better towards the end. Sweat is durable. Posted 10 sacks. Dexter great penetrator [that’s what she said], while Dayo can’t be worse, and Booker still filling out.
Bryant, Bush, Jackson, et al are young, hungry and fast. Most importantly, they’re BJ-Allen guys. More we Flush the Fluseez, the better.
Poles may have sucked ballz with Eberflus, but with BJ, they drafted fantastically, often rated as an “A” or “A+” selecting Loveland, Burden, Trapilo and Monangai.
Bears own 4 picks in top 90. If they draft as well in ’26 on Defense, holy smokes, that’ll go a long way while saving cap for possible trade-deadline studs.
NTM that this new regime has proven it can basically coach up anyone – Wright, CJGJ, Jackson, Trapilo, Monangai…so while the new crew on paper may not seem as sexy, CJ/Allen/Harris/Roushar will max their potential.
By nature, I’m not a ‘hot take’ kinda guy. I’m more akin to The Dude, and he always abides.
So, I’m not going to sit here and waste psychical energy morphing into either ButtonShoes or LCD. In my younger days, I actually cared about being right, and not just being right, but proving it to the unconverted.
Now? Well, maybe my zeal’s flaccid, but “winning” and bathing in TigerBlood about relatively trivial minutia barely moves my pulse.
For all we know, Caleb tears his ACL in August, or Myles Garrett finally forces his way out in October and Poles swings a deal – in either case, all this March Madness and angst turns moot.
For now the only thing I certainly know is that our Dline MUST improve, but at the same time, BJ/Caleb will likely take it up another notch.
ButtonShoes/LCD, Sith/Jedi, Ying/Yang. This is the way…
S Coby Bryant LB Devin Bush C Garrett Bradbury (’27 5th RDer) DT Neville Gallimore WR Kalif Raymond DB Cam Lewis DE Kentavius Street OT Jedrick Wills Jr.
Bears who re-signed LT Braxton Jones QB Case Keenum LB D’Marco Jackson S Elijah Hicks DE Daniel Hardy
Former Bears who signed elsewhere S Kevin Byard (signed with Patriots) CB Nahshon Wright (signed with Jets) LB Tremaine Edmunds (signed with Giants) WR Olamide Zaccheaus (signed with Falcons) DE Dominique Robinson (signed with Texans) DT Chris Williams (signed with Falcons) TE Durham Smythe (signed with Ravens)
Bears’ free agents who remain unsigned DE Joe Tryon-Shoyinka (Void) OL Ryan Bates (Void) DT Andrew Billings (UFA) LB Amen Ogbongbemiga (UFA) (released by Bears) S Jonathan Owens (UFA) S Jaquan Brisker (UFA) RB Travis Homer (UFA) CB Nick McCloud (UFA) LB Jalen Reeves-Maybin (UFA) CB Jaylon Jones (UFA) LS Scott Daly (UFA) WR Devin Duvernay (UFA) S C.J. Gardner-Johnson (UFA) OL Jordan McFadden (RFA) LB Ty Summers (SFA) C Ricky Stromberg (SFA)
Trust in Poles? For those who want to keep picks to draft the next Richard Dent…
Defensive line draft picks under Ryan Poles so far
At some point he needs to invest heavily in the trenches [Poles has invested, just badly]
Dayo Odeyingbo doesn’t care what his “sack total” is. He isn’t motivated by “stats, awards and accolades”. He just wants to win Championships. 🔥 pic.twitter.com/upX9BGRdDX
Hey, apparently, Dayo don’t care about sacks, pressures, TFLs, FFs, fumble recoveries, INTs, tipped passes, strips, tackles, stats, staying healthy, or any of your vein honors. He is now Motivated Dayo!
LB D’Marco Jackson re-signed 2 years $7.5 million S Coby Bryant signed 3 years $40 million DT Neville Gallimore signed 2 years $12 million LB Devin Bush signed 3 years $30 million ($21 million guaranteed) QB Case Keenum signed 2 years $5.5 million with a max value of $8 million OT Braxton Jones signed 1 year $10 million $ DE D Hardy 2 years $5 million
Departures WR OZ – Falcons DE D Robinson – Texans LB T Edmunds – Giants WR DJ Moore – Bills
NFL announced 33 compensatory picks for the 2026 draft. The #Bears were not awarded one. That doesn’t come as a surprise based on conversations last month at the combine.
DE Trey Hendrickson CB Tariq Woolen OT Rasheed Walker TE Chig Okonkwo WR Romeo Doubs S Kevin Byard CB Nahshon Wright DE K’Lavon Chaisson G Alijah Vera-Tucker G Chris Paul QB Kyler Murray OLB Bradley Chubb OT Taylor Decker OT Braden Smith G Elgton Jenkins WR Calvin Austin III WR Deebo Samuel WR Jauan Jennings G Wyatt Teller S Jaquan Brisker LB Kaden Elliss LB Leo Chenal TE Dallas Goedert TE David Njoku DT D.J. Reader RB Rachaad White
Even Twitter will be struggling to accurately relay all the transactions, so this shall be an open thread to follow moves.
roy_OTC@TexansCap Daniel Hardy signed a two-year contract with the Chicago Bears worth a base value of $4.97 million with $2.45 million guaranteed at signing.
Aaron Leming@AaronLemingNFL After this move, the #Bears roster sits at 53. Not counting draft class, etc, they’re now at $25.313M in cap space.
Thus far, I’ve been sorta right. “Cheap” C. Maybe a DT/DE. Brisker, DJ, Edmunds, Brisker…via con dios.
You know I’m not exactly a Poles-truther [shoulda been fired with Flus], but he’s not Pace at least. He tends to show discipline while taking chances on Side B players like Dayo, Jarrett, even Sweat with mixed results. One may counter, “Ah, but Thuney was premier, as was Dalman.” Well, Poles only ponied up a 4rth for Thuney and didn’t exactly overpay Dalman who retired anyways. OTOH, Pace likely throws two 1st rounders and DJ for Maxx Crosby or backs up the Brinks’ truck for Trey Hendrickson.
I simply don’t see that in Poles’ DNA. He’s not a rapper at a strip-club making it rain. He’s more like the frugal business man waiting for the 2-for-1 lapdance specials on a Tuesday. It could happen, but I’ll be surprised.
As such, I don’t exactly believe Poles will land a Peppers-Mack tier player. If the right situation pops, perhaps, but I suspect Poles isn’t going to leverage the future like his predecessors. His job isn’t on the line this year.
Poles will practice due diligence. He monitored the price of Crosby, Linderbaum and McGovern and swiped left.
I’m certain Poles will gauge the market on Hendrickson, Phillips, Carter…or other possible trade partners not on the radar, but my gut tells me he stays the course, keeps his cap and draft picks, then ‘settles’ for more B-sides maximum potential and flexibility. No doubt not splurging will rile up the natives. Doing your taxes cleanly isn’t sexy.
One other major difference between 2024 and 2026 is Ben Johnson; he, not Eberflus, is the fail-safe. Maybe even the boss like Tony Soprano while Poles is merely the puppet-boss Junior, in which case, I have much more hope considering the results of 2024 vs 2025.
So, excuse me while I doom scroll at the Bada Bing between “Cherry Pie” and “Girls Girls Girls”…
Cincinnati Bengals defensive end Trey Hendrickson. Jeff Haynes/AP
NFL free agency unofficially opens at noon ET on March 9 [MON] with the negotiation window (when players can agree to terms); it officially opens at 4 p.m. ET on March 11 ( WEDs when players can actually be signed).
I wanted Crosby initially; however, Dalman’s shocking retirement has changed my mind. Bears now have significant question marks at:
SS [Brisker gone], C [Dalman gone], LT [Trapilo achilles], DE [Dayo achilles/suckage], DT [only two on roster as of this weekend], LB [Edmunds gone, Edwards old, HippoWho?]
Thuney isn’t getting any younger; plus, this assumes Poles will resign an older Byard, and that the 3rd WR [DJ Moore gone] won’t be Velus Jones.
In other words – a rebuild – or retweak.
This isn’t quite “Apollo 13” where shit is at critical. This is more akin to “The Martian” where Poles [with major help from Ground Control Ben Johnson] must problem solve on the fly.
Bears are in an odd spot. They absolutely overachieved in a magical ’25 season which may distort the real talent and depth of the team.
It SEEMS [still TBD, btw] that the Bears nailed the two most vital components of sustained success: HC, QB
[the 3rd part is GM, but let’s not digress, ahem].
HC/QB can go a LONG way – mask many deficiencies and mistakes [see, 2000s Pats].
Ben Johnson and Caleb Williams are the foundation. They offer a floor that is higher than Lovie/Grossman.
The Oline is [or was] the strength of this team. A top 5 unit by most objective metrics.
So one could make a valid case for attaining a premium LT+C in FA.
The top 2 for the Bears should be recently released LT Taylor Decker [former Lion] on hopefully a short 1-2 yr deal ’til we know WTF is left of Trapilo
Also C Linderbaum [former Raven], though many predict he’s asking for north of $22M/yr.
Current Cap Space – NFC North
Chicago Bears: $32 million Green Bay Packers: $2.7 million Detroit Lions: -$6 million Minnesota Vikings: -$44.5 million
I could see Poles paying Decker, and sticking to a cheaper option at C. He did draft Luke Newman after all; albeit that doesn’t automatically make him viable [cough- Kiran, Hippo, Velus- cough].
Poles will now have to do what many great GMs [Grandmasters] must:
Sacrifice lesser pieces to win.
The proven formula is to build the lines, but does that mean paying a C like a player who scores TDs? NO.
OTOH, one of the first things Poles did with BJ was sign Dalman, so it could be that BJ values C much more since his O lines up under C at a higher % than say the shotgun-happy Cards.
IMO that unexpected $10M+ Dalman windfall should funnel to DE.
LTs typically get paid, so I’d have no issue with a short-term Decker deal because the alternative is Parsons/Hutchinson/Turner-v-Benedet twice this year.
Personally, I’d much rather the Bears pay for LT, and DE.
Hendrickson is older and less effective vs run than Crosby, but he won’t cost draft picks.
Between him, Booker, and whatever Dayo can muster on one Achilles, should improve Bears’ D while keeping that #25 for any number of long term solutions at DT, DE, LT, C, S.
The other option is Poles opting for blue-bin specials.
If Poles decides to skip on day 1 splashes, players such as these could be solid additions:
Edge Jaelen Phillips
DE Rashan Gary [only 28]
Edge Mack
Edge Cam Jordan [Allen connection]
DT Rankins [Allen connection]
LBDemario Davis [Allen…]
C McGovern
DT Jonathan Allen…
Chicago Bears Network@bearsnetwork_ LB Alex Anzalone is a name to watch for the Bears in free agency, per Jeremy Fowler.
The #Rams and star S Kam Curl have agreed to terms on a new deal to keep him in Los Angeles before free agency, per The Insiders.
He gets a 3-year, $36M contract with a max value of $39M in a deal done by Milk and Honey Sports. A big week for LA’s secondary. pic.twitter.com/zCy7hhHXru
Going into the weekend, no doubt a slew of players will get released, traded, or retire than the current list, so definitely a time to refresh news’ feed. Should be exciting for us Bear fans!
TLDR Butch Moves.
Pay DE Hendrickson Pay LT Decker Pay DT Rankins/Allen Prolly go cheap at C, draft Prolly go cheap at SS, draft Trade Bagency, get athletic project Try to trade Kyler Gordon, NB draft Maybe rework/trade Kmet Resign Byard and Demarco Jackson Maaaybe see what we can get for CB Jaylon Johnson.
Time to totally remake roster in Ben Johnson image.
Update:
Gary Ross@gaross18-7h Courtney Cronin was on ESPN1000 this morning & said that she expects the Bears to get the comp picks for Cunningham. That would be HUGE!
Comp update: Bears are trading a 2027 fifth-round pick to the Patriots for Garrett Bradbury. https://t.co/XO6Bfg1yr0
Don’t know why, but the combine really snuck up this year. I had a few ideas for pieces, but it came and went quickly. Then moving to Indiana and Dalman retiring [NTM the U.S. launching another Middle Eastern War].
Likely a combo of factors. Bears for once weren’t irrelevant by Thanksgiving, even winning the division and a playoff game. So the season was actually longer. Must’ve thrown off my circadian Bears’ rhythm conditioned to suckage and checking mock drafts in November.
It’s also a little hard to get super-hyped over this draft because.
1. It’s more than likely Poles trades away the 1st [+ change] rd pick.
2. Even if Poles keeps it, it’s still the 25th. Not complaining. Better than the alternative of perennially drafting in the top 10.
But mostly it’s reason #1 that’s keeping me from getting truly invested though that will change as we near April.
As such, I’ll let Unbearble Sports breakdown the ‘winners’ and ‘losers’ from the combine.
Two quick Butch notes.
I know Bears desperately need Dline, but man, if Ohio State linebacker Sonny Styles miraculously drops to #25, Poles needs to waddle his ass to the podium.
Styles recorded a blistering 4.46-second 40-, a 43.5-inch vert, and an 11-foot-2 inch broad jump at 6’5″, 244 lbs.
Sonny Styles RAS.
Ranked #1 linebacker graded out of 3215 since 1987.
I must admit I haven’t watched the other Buckeye’s tape because he keeps shooting up the boards, but if Safety Caleb Downs also somehow tumbles to #25, I’d have no issue with Poles pulling the trigger. It’s a copy-cat league, and many just witnessed what a rookie S in SEA named Nick Emmanwori can do. SEA didn’t exactly have the ’85 Bears pass-rush, but they rostered exceptional talent all through the “Darkside.”
Nick Emmanwori is a SS prospect in the 2025 draft class. He scored an unofficial 10.00 #RAS out of a possible 10.00. This ranked 1 out of 1079 SS from 1987 to 2025.
Kyle Hamilton on the Ravens is another example of how a versatile S can impact games.
I doubt Caleb Downs’ RAS will surpass theirs, but from most ‘experts’, he’s the goods.
Caleb Downs (6’0 205) Ohio State
+ Coach on the field/film junkie + 89.6 coverage grade in 2025 + 83.7 run defense grade in 2025 + Has just under 2,500 snaps in only three years in college + Physical in run support + Special teams’ experience including as a punt returner +… pic.twitter.com/mtT1VFKcSl
That’s not a shabby exchange actually. DJ’s production didn’t match his contract, and it dropped mostly because of circumstance.
Under Ben Johnson, the Bears are a run-first team. Feeding Swift-Monangai tandem ate a lot of snaps. Then the acquisitions of Rome, Burden and Loveland siphoned away more targets [let’s not forget that Kmet is also still on the team].
I mean, if Flus was still HC, and if Fields is still the QB with DJ as his lone target, then DJ is a 100 catch/1200+ WR [if he stays upright]. Thankfully, that’s no longer the case, and now he can be the true #1 or #2 target on the Bills while the Bears can use that extra 2nd rounder for a Center, LT, S, LB, or even to sweeten the pot for a DE/DT via trade.
Here are the #Bears' updated draft picks in 2026 after the DJ Moore trade:
It’s waaaaay too early for mock drafts, but here we are! Unlike Jeff, I do not view them as ‘slave auctions.’
I think they’re quite entertaining and excellent ‘filler’ post-SB.
No, I am not entirely comfortable with strange old men measuring young athletes like a slab of meat, but if someone is willing to throw me millions to measure my arms and run, jump and bench in spandex, sign me up.
Kiper, aka Legohead, was the OG. He’s probably over the hill, but hey, time makes us all fat Elvis. There’s a lot of Draftniks out there, but Joel Klatt eats, drinks and breaths college football year round. He’s a maniac, and doesn’t do ‘hot takes’ for hits.
Spoiler alert, he has Bears drafting DT Kayden McDonald, Ohio St @ #25. I don’t know much about McDonald, but I DO love selecting a DT since I still believe that’s the Bears’ biggest need. The sooner the Eberflus leftovers are gone, the better [and Jarrett didn’t exactly wow either]. Debating who the Bears should draft at #25 is almost useless at this point though since everyone believes Poles is trading it for an Edge.
Speaking of which, Harrison Graham discusses the price [via insider] which Maxx Crosby might take.
Long story short.
Bargain cost: #25 + DJ Moore
Expensive cost: Two 1sts, another 2nd/3rd + DJ Moore
