It has already been a dramatic and exciting offseason for the Chicago Bears, and free agency hasn’t even begun.
After all, general manager Ryan Poles and the Bears emerged with the most coveted head coaching candidate this hiring cycle, landing Ben Johnson, and the first-time head coach has gotten down to work building an experienced coaching staff since his arrival.
Last week during the NFL Combine in Indianapolis, Poles and Johnson sounded like they are in alignment that the Bears plan to be aggressive throughout this offseason in free agency and the 2025 NFL Draft, building around second-year former No. 1 overall pick Caleb Williams at quarterback.
How Chicago Bears plan to build the roster for Ben Johnson
Pro Football Focus examined each team’s top offseason priority, including the Bears investing in Johnson’s vision when it comes to building out the roster in the weeks ahead.
“The former Lions offensive coordinator helped craft one of the best offenses in the NFL over the past few years,” Thomas Valentine writes of Johnson and the Bears. “And now he will try and salvage a unit that struggled in 2024. The Bears have their quarterback of the future, spending the No. 1 pick in 2024 on Caleb Williams, and some key pieces on offense, but the goal this offseason should be to build the foundation for Johnson’s offense.
“That likely means heavily investing resources in the offensive line, which struggled in 2024. Williams was sacked 68 times in the regular season, more than any other quarterback in the NFL, and the Bears allowed a 30.2% pressure rate. Chicago will have the fourth-most available cap space ($79.7 million) and the 10th pick in the 2025 NFL Draft to dedicate to the offensive line, and there’s a strong chance the team will draft another running back to improve the rushing game, too.”
How Chicago handles its offensive line rebuild will be one of the more fascinating storylines to unfold across the league this offseason.
There was a strong belief that offensive guard Trey Smith was a top target of the Bears, but, the Kansas City Chiefs applied the franchise tag on Smith, preventing him from reaching the market. Where the Bears go from here, as far as prioritizing one of the remaining free-agent guards or investing in one of the top offensive tackles in April’s NFL Draft remains to be seen.
Likewise, Chicago could go shopping for a dynamic running back early in the draft and still must mine a complementary pass rusher opposite Montez Sweat before the 2025 NFL season kicks off.
After all, the Lions were most successful in 2024 with electrifying running back duo David Montgomery and Jahmyr Gibbs as the focal points of Detroit’s offense.
Few teams are as well positioned as the Bears are from a cap space and draft capital standpoint this offseason, but how Poles goes about building a roster in Johnson’s image could determine Chicago’s trajectory in the years to come.
Chicago Bears 2025 NFL free agency profile: Malcolm Koonce
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