On Friday, the Chicago Bears announced the release of two players.
Tight end Gerald Everett wasn’t a surprise. Frankly, he was the most obvious cap cut the Bears had going into the offseason.
Everett was only brought into Chicago because he was familiar with Shane Waldron’s offense. Once Waldron was fired, the writing was on the wall for Everett after having a non-productive 2024.
The Chicago Bears made a surprise cap cut
However, the Bears’ announcement that DeMarcus Walker was being released was a surprise, especially given the lack of depth on the defensive line. The veteran gave the Bears flexibility in Matt Eberflus’ defense, as the edge rusher was moved to the interior part of the line in certain packages.
Cutting Everett and Walker saved the Bears $10.75 million, giving general manager Ryan Poles more cap to add talent in free agency. He now has more urgency to add defensive line help after cutting Walker, and that could be by design from new defensive coordinator Dennis Allen.
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The Bears wouldn’t have let Walker leave unless new head coach Ben Johnson and Allen signed off. From his first press conference, Allen stressed the need for the Bears to add help on the defensive line to get to the passer in 2025.
“We’ll figure out what we need to do,” Allen said. “But I think Ben in his press conference made a great point, that this has become a quarterback-driven league. I mean that’s what this league is, so I think everything that we do is going to be based on how do we affect the quarterback, and you affect the quarterback through rush and coverage, and that’s the pinnacle of what team defense is all about.
“So we can be as great as we want to be covering everybody, but if we can’t rush the passer it’s not going to matter and vice versa. If we can get to the passer quickly but we can’t disrupt routes and be competitive on the line of scrimmage, then we’re going to give up completions, so I think those two things have to be able to work together.”
Josh Sweat or Myles Garrett to the Bears?
After cutting Walker, the Bears need to find a starter that can play opposite of Montez Sweat. Walker’s release assures the necessity that Poles adds a premier talent in free agency. Aaron Schatz of ESPN pointed out Chicago should sign Josh Sweat in addition to multiple draft picks.
Following Walker’s cut, the Bears need to think about adding a player like Sweat or trading for a defensive end like Myles Garrett. The Bears have added extra cap. They must add a sack artist in addition to landing an elite interior offensive lineman like Trey Smith.
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