The Chicago Bears will have plenty of decisions to make this off-season. While they have heaps of cap space, they have to fill out an entire roster, and right now they do not have many spots filled. So, while fans would love to dump everybody and start over, there will be players coming back.
Which Chicago Bears free agents are most likely to return to the team they played for in 2022?
Could the Chicago Bears run it back with Nicholas Morrow
There are a lot of players you could point to for the defensive failures, but Nicholas Morrow is far from one of them. The question is whether or not Morrow is enough to help to take them out of this situation, or if he was a placeholder that the team could upgrade from.
Morrow played all but one snap this season which is impressive when you think of all of the movement that was around him. He had the green dot, gave it up, and got it back, and it never impacted him on the field.
Morrow is coming off of a 2021 season where he missed the entire year with an injury. Coming back with a fully healthy season is impressive, and there is a thought that he can now get improve this offseason rather than return to form. He is only going to be 28.
Morrow can likely feel loyalty to the team that gave him a shot and will now stand by him as a starter for year two. Beyond that, his salary will not be over the top, and he will not be in a bidding war.
The Chicago Bears can re-sign Morrow for cheap, have Sanborn beside him on a small salary, and then dedicate the resources they have to fix the defensive line. Then, they can really judge Sanborn and Morrow and replace either in 2024 if needed.