4 free agents who would solve the Chicago Bears problem at center

Chicago Bears Free Agent Target: Ryan Jensen, C – Buccaneers

Easily the most-talented center who may become available in the 2022 offseason is Ryan Jensen. I say may become available because I am sure that the Bucs would like to retain him if possible. As many of you are aware, I am not the biggest fan of Pro Football Focus (PFF) grades. However, I do lean on them a bit when it comes to offensive line analysis. Although Ryan Jensen was not elite in 2021, he would still be a major upgrade over Sam Mustipher.

Last season, Jensen finished with every strong 70.3 PFF grade. For comparison sake, Mustipher finished with a 51.8 PFF grade. One area that stands out to me is Jensen’s tenacity and ability to be the anchor of the Buccaneers offensive line. He has not missed a game in five years and has had a couple of down years sprinkled in with some elite ones.

The only real concern here is that Jensen will be 31 years old before the 2022 season starts. This means that the Chicago Bears, or any team for that matter, might not want to give him the security Jensen might be looking for in a long-term deal. Jensen is coming off a four-year, $42 million dollar deal. I am not confident that he’d accept it, but I’d have to think that Ryan Poles would not want to give Jensen more than a three-year deal.

If I were to guess, I’d expect the market to be between $10 million and $12 million in AAV for Jensen. Does Ryan Poles want to dump that much money into the center position? He might have to if he truly wants to find players who are considered “maulers” for his offensive line. Poles has made it known that he wants to retool the group and signing Jensen would be a big first step.