The Chicago Bears lose out on two potential free-agent offensive linemen

Chicago Bears FA Target: Elgton Jenkins, OG – Re-Signs with Green Bay Packers

Elgton Jenkins is a bit of a different story. Jenkins has versatility but is essentially a guard. He is familiar with Luke Getsy and should have filled in nicely. Should the team keep Lucas Patrick for the 2023 season, it would have been a nice pairing to add Jenkins, who is familiar with Patrick also. Personally, I’d prefer they upgrade the center spot though.

Jenkins is set to make an average of $17 million dollars over the next four years. That makes him the second-highest-paid guard in the NFL behind only Quentin Nelson. As much as I liked Jenkins, I wasn’t going to pay him that much per year. That’s not an at-home discount either, which I’m fine with the Packers spending.

To put it bluntly, I’d much rather have a right tackle with Jack Conklin’s caliber of play for $15 million per season than Jenkins for $17 million. Just because the Chicago Bears have a large amount of salary cap space for 2023, throwing it out blindly isn’t a recipe for success either.

The Chicago Bears could make these three surprise cuts in 2023

The Chicago Bears roster will look completely different in key areas next season. With another roster overhaul, these three players could be surprise cuts.

The good news is that the Chicago Bears have other options still. The team can still build through the draft too. Trading down and acquiring another top-50 pick would be ideal in my opinion. Although, it will be hard to pass up on a player like Will Anderson or Jalen Carter. Adding an extra pick would allow them to draft an interior lineman and another offensive tackle within the top 75 picks. They can also look at another wide receiver or defensive lineman too.

The point is, there are still some solid options and other teams may make some cuts that could lead to other options not currently on the table.