The Bears 2025 Free Agency Thread

[Lake Shore Drive]

I watched a lot of Commanders games last season.....JD5 put him on the map. If not for Jayden,I would gave never heard of him either.....

We have to think Ben Johnson has his handprints on this. Know very little about the guy other than what I initially spit out. Have to watch some game film on him. If nothing else, at first glance he at least seems dependable.

 

[wood20ks]

Apparently Poles and Ben really like Jonah.....they gave him an ext thru 2027......

Bears Extend OL Jonah Jackson

Jonah Jackson was traded to the Bears last week, and the lineman earned an extension along the way. According to …

www.profootballrumors.com

 

[DJ Fieri]

The Bears killed FA IMO.

 

[DJ Fieri]

Yeah but if JJ McCarthy doesn't pan out or they don't find another solution at QB and Sam Darnold plays well in Seattle.....Kwesi is getting fired in two years.

They gotta find a reliable backup QB or they could regress with basically a rookie QB.

 

[Jiddy]

The Bears killed FA IMO.

Counterpoint: If we win 6 or less games this year this sh*t is going nuclear.

 

[DJ Fieri]

Counterpoint: If we win 6 or less games this year this sh*t is going nuclear.

No chance that happens IMO.

 

[Lake Shore Drive]

The Bears killed FA IMO.

I feel we at least covered the number of areas where we were sorely lacking in talent, which were many sad to say. Now we have to see how it all plays out, but all in all I think our GM did a pretty good job.

 

[Jiddy]

No chance that happens IMO.

This response is exactly why it would go nuclear.

Our division is pretty strong. One injury of a key player and we could be in the cellar again…and Im not talking about Caleb. We are not very deep. Complete nuclear disaster is definitely possible. Bears have crushed enough spirits in their building over the years to make me skeptical enough that we may be watching a shellshocked Ben Johnson address the media next season…..just like Poles did this season.

 

[justanidiot]

I watched a lot of Commanders games last season.....JD5 put him on the map. If not for Jayden,I would gave never heard of him either.....

I saw my share of Commanders games and dont remember him. You think they struck out on Cupp, Lockett, Hopkins guys who are all being paid anyway?
i get the not wanting Diggs Drama, but pretty sure they will be paying about the same money.

As far as the rest of free agency, there is still plenty of work to do. The starting lineup is sound, a better running back is about all we need, but they still need to win on some picks for injuries.

 

[Lake Shore Drive]

I saw my share of Commanders games and dont remember him. You think they struck out on Cupp, Lockett, Hopkins guys who are all being paid anyway?
i get the not wanting Diggs Drama, but pretty sure they will be paying about the same money.

As far as the rest of free agency, there is still plenty of work to do. The starting lineup is sound, a better running back is about all we need, but they still need to win on some picks for injuries.

I was for getting Lockett, but his '24 salary was over 17mil. Now he obviously won't be getting anything close to this in '25, but I'm sure whichever team inks him will likely have to fork over somewhere in the 10mil range. The contract details for Zaccheaus haven't been posted yet, at least I haven't seen anything, but I highly doubt it's for more than 2mil, if even that. I only bring this up because it's already being reported that the Bears will soon be out of cap space once all contracts have been signed, including the upcoming draftees. We've now reached the point of having to restructure, as in kicking the can down the road. So I can see why Poles didn't aggressively pursue Lockett, Cupp, or Hopkins, the latter two already long past their primes.

 

[wood20ks]

I saw my share of Commanders games and dont remember him. You think they struck out on Cupp, Lockett, Hopkins guys who are all being paid anyway?
i get the not wanting Diggs Drama, but pretty sure they will be paying about the same money.

As far as the rest of free agency, there is still plenty of work to do. The starting lineup is sound, a better running back is about all we need, but they still need to win on some picks for injuries.

Zaccheus was their 3rd wr......
He was 3rd in targets,receptions,yardage and tds.....
Of course behind McLaurin and Ertz....

I had JD5 on my fantasy team,So I watched quite a few games.....

 

[justanidiot]

I was for getting Lockett, but his '24 salary was over 17mil. Now he obviously won't be getting anything close to this in '25, but I'm sure whichever team inks him will likely have to fork over somewhere in the 10mil range. The contract details for Zaccheaus haven't been posted yet, at least I haven't seen anything, but I highly doubt it's for more than 2mil, if even that. I only bring this up because it's already being reported that the Bears will soon be out of cap space once all contracts have been signed, including the upcoming draftees. We've now reached the point of having to restructure, as in kicking the can down the road. So I can see why Poles didn't aggressively pursue Lockett, Cupp, or Hopkins, the latter two already long past their primes.

I thought Lockett was like a Russell Wilson signing. His guaranteed money from Seattle is 13 million this year. So the bears pay him 2 million, he is still making 15. This is usually the time the veteran chooses a team with a shot to go deep in the playoffs to cash in on a deal next year when his guaranteed money is done.

DK Metcalfs guaranteed money with seattle was a 3/72, 18 million this year. Pittsburg extended him for 4/132 So since he was traded, the 18 million is year 1 with pittsburg, his extension of 4/132 starts next year that make his 5/150 deal whole..

I am far from a cap genius, so that was most likely why nobody wanted to trade for Lockett, but got a deal trading for Metcalf at only 18 million this year. Its the end of the guaranteed money from those deals. I wont be surprised seeing Cupp ending up in KC for a shot at a ring and his base salary of 12.5. LA is saving his roster bonus of 7.5 million..

 

[justanidiot]

Zaccheus was their 3rd wr......
He was 3rd in targets,receptions,yardage and tds.....
Of course behind McLaurin and Ertz....

I had JD5 on my fantasy team,So I watched quite a few games.....

not doubting you, just think I would have remembered the announcers calling that name out.

BJ wants a speed receivers out there, so I am just hoping the waters dont get too clouded from getting Tyler Scott involved in the offense this year.

 

[BearsWillWin]

I think our #3 receiver is gonna come via the draft. Zaccheus is good depth but he's not a starter. I don't think you want to roll into the season with him as the guy you're banking on to be target number three or four.

We are not very deep.

For sure. We need depth almost everywhere.

Running back is one of the stronger rooms overall but it's also not top heavy. Unless Swift has a big bounce back year.

You need more receivers...you need depth at tight end. You are thin across the offensive line even after these recent moves. You have your starters but not a lot of reliable swing guys you feel good about. The defensive line still has a long way to go. The LB room has two guys you trust and that's it. DBs are no where near bad but if Brisker isn't healthy it looks a lot of more bleak.

Tons of work to do.

 

[BearsWillWin]

Zaccheus was their 3rd wr......
He was 3rd in targets,receptions,yardage and tds.....
Of course behind McLaurin and Ertz....

I had JD5 on my fantasy team,So I watched quite a few games.....

He definitely had a nice year for who he is. On an offense that was creative so maybe BJ can do something with him. I just don't feel good if we go into September and he's #3 on the depth chart.

 

[dudley laywicker]

bears fans should be really happy at how greatly your team improved his week.

 

[Lake Shore Drive]

Here's an updated cap space report from BearsWire:

Bears' updated 2025 salary cap space after first wave of free agency

The Bears made a slew of moves during the first week of free agency. Here's an updated look at their 2025 salary cap.

bearswire.usatoday.com

Chicago had roughly $80 million in salary cap space before those moves. Now, they're sitting with $16.11 million in cap space, according to Over The Cap. But that doesn't include the cap hits of tight end Durham Smythe or wide receiver Olamide Zaccheaus, as we're still waiting on contract details.

And if I'm not mistaken, it doesn't yet account for any remaining in-house contracts, if any, still needing to be addressed, nor does it include the rookie signings. So in essence, we're pretty much down to zero. There will still be team cuts and likely some restructurings here and there. But unlike the past few years where we seemed to be swimming in excess cap space, those good times have come to an end. Personally, I thought it was more than worth it. I think our team is much stronger than the '24 squad, in particular the OL. We still lack depth, but much of that can be filled with signing other team cuts, the draft, and finding that occasional UDFA gem.

 

[dudley laywicker]

the better the protection,more yards williams throws for under ben johnson.he was the most sacked qb in 2024 was,nt he?

 

[Lake Shore Drive]

the better the protection,more yards williams throws for under ben johnson.he was the most sacked qb in 2024 was,nt he?

By far. 68 times in fact.