4 Chicago Bears who could earn an extension this offseason

The Chicago Bears are heading into an offseason that has the potential to set this franchise up for years to come. Ryan Poles needs to hit on more decisions than not. This includes free agency, the 2023 NFL Draft and more. With the first pick in the draft and the most salary cap space, Poles has plenty of resources at his disposal. Poles cannot focus on only 2023 though. He must look beyond the upcoming season and look to the future. He cannot make a move now that can negatively impact the team one or two years from now.

This is why I expect the Chicago Bears to be very strategic with their offseason spending. The team has plenty of salary cap space despite the number falling from the projected $118 million a few weeks ago. Part of that strategy will be re-signing players whose contracts are coming to an end this season. It’s also looking ahead to those players who are going to become free agents in 2024 and possibly giving them a contract extension prior to their contracts expiring.

The Chicago Bears could look to extend these four players before 2024

When looking ahead, the Bears have 17 players who are scheduled to become free agents after the 2023 season. One of those is an exclusive restricted free agent and the other 16 are to be unrestricted free agents. Out of those 17 players, I think four of them stand out as players who could earn an extension either this offseason or possibly during the 2023 regular season. With the salary cap available to Ryan Poles, extending these players now could lead to a bit of a discount come 2024.