The Bears 2025 Free Agency Thread

[Lake Shore Drive]

The house cleaning begins:

Bears Release Gerald Everett, DeMarcus Walker

The Bears are releasing tight end Gerald Everett and defensive end DeMarcus Walker.

www.profootballrumors.com

Neither one a shocker, in fact both were expected to be released. And that last line....More to come.

 

[BearsWillWin]

I thought Everett was a good signing as a #2 TE

That turned out to be ridiculously wrong

He was straight up awful

 

[Lake Shore Drive]

Here's an article from USA Today listing the top 15 free agents who could hit the open market next month:

NFL free agent rankings 2025: Tee Higgins, Sam Darnold lead top free agents on offense

Free agency is nearly here and multiple players could change teams. Here are our top 15 players on offense.

www.usatoday.com

Key players pertaining to the Bears OL needs and per their ranking:

3. Trey Smith - He remains the top OL on the market. Sucked in the playoffs, but a great regular season makes him the most in demand and he'll rake with his next contract.
4. Ronnie Stanley - Feels like he's been in the league for 20 years, yet he'll only be 31 this coming season. He's had injury issues, but last year he was healthy and made the Pro Bowl.
6. Drew Dalman - Top center on the market, assuming he's ok physically, he's my top get. I'm sick of poor center play from our team.
8. Will Fries - Pretty much the same as Dalman, if health is no concern, he could be a fit on the inside.
10. Mekhi Becton - As I've stated in a previous thread, here's your poor man's Trey Smith. If the budget's running a bit tight, he could be had for half the price tag of Smith.
12. Josh Myers - If Dalman doesn't work out for whatever reasons, how about this guy? It would be nice to take one from the Packers.
15. Tevin Jenkins - When healthy, he's a mauler, but that questionable health seems like it will always be an annual issue. It's looking like the Bears are gonna let him walk.

 

[Jiddy]

Saturday morning reality check:

We have 4 line positions that currently don't have starter quality players (C, LG, RG, DE)...It could be argued 5 depending on your take on Billings at DT.

That's a LOT to overcome. Even if we do a great job at filling those spots, they'll all be playing together as a new unit so growing pains will be felt. Just too many holes for that to not happen. I don't give a sh*t if George Halas and Vince Lombardi rose from the grave and coached us up.

Not that richi won't pick us to win 12 games again...lol.

 

[Lake Shore Drive]

Saturday morning reality check:

We have 4 line positions that currently don't have starter quality players (C, LG, RG, DE)...It could be argued 5 depending on your take on Billings at DT.

That's a LOT to overcome. Even if we do a great job at filling those spots, they'll all be playing together as a new unit so growing pains will be felt. Just too many holes for that to not happen. I don't give a sh*t if George Halas and Vince Lombardi rose from the grave and coached us up.

Not that richi won't pick us to win 12 games again...lol.

No doubt that even if Poles is able to fill all four open OL positions, as you stated, there would undoubtedly be some growing pains involved. As for Billings, even if he's back at full strength, this is his last season under contract. The chances of extending him are probably slim. This is why I believe the DT spot needs to be addressed, likely via the draft.

And I can't make too much fun of richi, being I stupidly called for the Bears to win 10 last year. I definitely won't be repeating that again.

 

[justanidiot]

Hard to believe Darnold is ranked so high after falling on his face in the playoffs. Most thought that cost him about 20 million per season off the "going rate".
Lots of interesting players, Becton got moved inside last season, its going to be interesting if somebody offers him tackle money and go out there again on a short deal to try to cash in again in a year or two. Jenkins is about the same way, most likely still wants to be a guard, just wonder if the injury bug stuck around because he was playing a hand down get low position over being a tackle again. I would guess his agent is looking at him getting a shot at tackle again as well.
All I know is Poles tried to build the line thru free agency last year and failed, so he better aim high and count on the draft.

 

[Lake Shore Drive]

All I know is Poles tried to build the line thru free agency last year and failed, so he better aim high and count on the draft.

I think it's safe to say it will be a combination of the two. Filling three, possibly even four vacancies on the OL going with just either/or won't cut it. Free agency will likely be too expensive to fill all the spots, unless Poles takes the cheapo route, which I hope he doesn't. And zero chance of drafting 3-4 starters. FTR I don't see Jones getting busted down to reserve, altho it's possible he could get shifted inside, depending on who Poles signs or drafts.

 

[BearsWillWin]

Jenkins is about the same way, most likely still wants to be a guard, just wonder if the injury bug stuck around because he was playing a hand down get low position over being a tackle again

Sometimes I read this type of shit and I just wonder how dumb the person is that typed it.

 

[DJ Fieri]

Becton showed he is best at guard.

Don't sign him to be a tackle....

 

[DJ Fieri]

I think it's safe to say it will be a combination of the two. Filling three, possibly even four vacancies on the OL going with just either/or won't cut it. Free agency will likely be too expensive to fill all the spots, unless Poles takes the cheapo route, which I hope he doesn't. And zero chance of drafting 3-4 starters. FTR I don't see Jones getting busted down to reserve, altho it's possible he could get shifted inside, depending on who Poles signs or drafts.

Very smart post.

 

[Payton]

Saturday morning reality check:

We have 4 line positions that currently don't have starter quality players (C, LG, RG, DE)...It could be argued 5 depending on your take on Billings at DT.

That's a LOT to overcome. Even if we do a great job at filling those spots, they'll all be playing together as a new unit so growing pains will be felt. Just too many holes for that to not happen. I don't give a sh*t if George Halas and Vince Lombardi rose from the grave and coached us up.

Not that richi won't pick us to win 12 games again...lol.

Have we given up on Zacch Pickens as a viable starting DT? He's going into his 3rd year, but wasn't sure of any news regarding his development, or if he's just a forever backup.

 

[Jiddy]

Have we given up on Zacch Pickens as a viable starting DT? He's going into his 3rd year, but wasn't sure of any news regarding his development, or if he's just a forever backup.

I have. 2 years and basically nothing. I think it would be a mistake not to sign or draft a DT based on him and Billings.

 

[Lake Shore Drive]

I have. 2 years and basically nothing. I think it would be a mistake not to sign or draft a DT based on him and Billings.

Could not agree more. Billings, at least when not injured, has actually performed quite well for the Bears. But he is in his final year and it wouldn't shock me if it's his last with our team. I really rooted for Pickens to break thru, but to date he has been a borderline bust. DT, be it thru free agency or the draft, is high on my list of needs.

 

[justanidiot]

I am pretty sure the main goal of the DT's in Everflukes system was to keep the linebackers clean. You dont hear about them, they dont get stats, but your linebackers are among the league leaders in tackles. Of course, the meat ball writers see a dominant DT like Jones and expect us to have one too.
Just like Mahomes would not be Mahomes in Chicago, Carter would not have been Carter in Chicago either, especially if he was asked to tie up 2 or three blockers every play.

 

[BearsWillWin]

I am pretty sure the main goal of the DT's in Everflukes system was to keep the linebackers clean.

The goal of defensive tackles in every defensive system since the beginning of football has been to plug holes and stop the run.

Ours, outside of Billings and at times Dexter, have been very bad at that.

You dont hear about them, they dont get stats, but your linebackers are among the league leaders in tackles.

Linebackers tend to get more tackles when the line doesn't do it's job.

, Carter would not have been Carter in Chicago either,

I call bullshit. DTs that wreck a line tend to do that everywhere.

especially if he was asked to tie up 2 or three blockers every play.

That is not something anyone is ever asked to do. It's what happens when you're really good and the offense has to pay more attention to you.

 

[richig07]

Saturday morning reality check:

We have 4 line positions that currently don't have starter quality players (C, LG, RG, DE)...It could be argued 5 depending on your take on Billings at DT.

That's a LOT to overcome. Even if we do a great job at filling those spots, they'll all be playing together as a new unit so growing pains will be felt. Just too many holes for that to not happen. I don't give a sh*t if George Halas and Vince Lombardi rose from the grave and coached us up.

Not that richi won't pick us to win 12 games again...lol.

My opinion is that our O line wasn't as bad as most believe it to have been. That our young QB was largely to blame. If Ben works his magic a little bit ahead of schedule? Suddenly we're onto something and filling a DE spot opposite of Sweat (with a reasonably decent player) no longer seems like some massive task. I liked our roster last year and I'll probably like it this year. The QB and HC need to make it all come together.

 

[BearsWillWin]

My opinion is that our O line wasn't as bad as most believe it to have been. That our young QB was largely to blame.

The line was bad when it was Trubisky. It was bad when it was Dalton. And Foles. And then Fields. And now Caleb.

But Bears fans still wanna blame the QB.

Three out of five of those guys mentioned certainly had their own issues in terms of reading defenses and getting the ball out. No doubt. But at the end of the day....there simply isn't enough talent on this offensive line.

The QB and HC need to make it all come together.

The GM needs to put better talent in the trenches on both sides of the ball.

 

[Jiddy]

My opinion is that our O line wasn't as bad as most believe it to have been. That our young QB was largely to blame. If Ben works his magic a little bit ahead of schedule? Suddenly we're onto something and filling a DE spot opposite of Sweat (with a reasonably decent player) no longer seems like some massive task. I liked our roster last year and I'll probably like it this year. The QB and HC need to make it all come together.

Nate Davis was terrible. Just a really bad FA signing.

Coleman Shelton was exactly what we paid for.

Teven Jenkins was injured all the time.

All 3 are gone and there's nobody in their spot.

The 2 mainstays at tackle, at best, can be argued as average.

We have 3 empty positions and 2 "average" positions at starting o-line going into this season.

Not one player that a non-biased observer would consider above average, much less all-pro caliber level on our line.

Our depth is a joke. Matt Pryor was ok I guess? The Kiran Kid got embarrassed out there. Ryan Bates is the greatest player (at least to Ryan Poles) that never was. Jake Curhan? Doug Kramer?!? Borom was decent depth I guess...AAAAANNNNDDD..He's gone too.

Who gives a sh*t if you think last season's o-line was better than advertised? Our line is a f*cking joke right now. We have NOTHING outside of Jones and Wright. That's kind of insane if you think about it.

I doubt if you, with an unbiased comb, scoured the entire NFL there is no other team that has as many question marks and holes on their o-line as we do right now...and most of them probably have at least ONE guy on their line that fans are like..."Yeah, that's a dude."

Ryan Poles is a former offensive lineman. That's gotta be a top 3 NFL punchline at this point.

 

[Lake Shore Drive]

richi, I think you're swimming upstream on this one bro. Maybe the OL isn't outright horrible, but it's pretty damn bad. It's universally agreed that at the very least we need three new bodies (unless by some strange act of fate, we re-sign Jenkins), and it can even be argued that we need four. However, I don't think that Jones will be banished to the bench, at worst they'll slot him inside. But that still leaves three openings, which would render any argument about the OL being ok useless.

 

[Lake Shore Drive]

We've been talking mainly about the OL and DE/Edge in terms of free agency. We've also discussed the DT spot, altho it seems mainly with respect to the draft. Here's a free agent who's a DT: Osa Odighizuwa. Please don't ask me to pronounce his last name!!! But he's still young enough at 26 - he'll be 27 by the time the season starts - Some of his numbers are decent....47 total tackles, 4.5 sacks, 1 forced fumble. But the stat that impresses me the most was his 60 QB pressures last season, tied for fifth among NFL defensive tackles. He's a bit on the light side by today's standards, 6'2 280lb, but has a quick initial step and is considered strong for his overall size. Plus he never misses games. Depending on what he's asking, he might be at least worth a look-see.