There is a very good chance the Chicago Bears may have taken the worst interior offensive line in the NFC and turned it into the best in the span of about a week in the 2025 NFL offseason. After acquiring Jonah Jackson and First Team All-Pro Joe Thuney, head coach Ben Johnson and GM Ryan Poles kept adding by signing Drew Dalman.
Dalman, who played the last four years with the Atlanta Falcons and was limited to nine games in 2024 due to injury, will sign a three-year contract that will pay him $42 million. Only Kansas City Chiefs All-Pro Creed Humphrey will make more per year than Dalman and his $14 million AAV.
The Dalman signing will make him a force multiplier in Johnson's new-look Bears offense. Multiple players entering pivotal 2025 seasons will be able to benefit from a rock-solid starting center who has proven to be a quality pass protector.
3 Bears players who will be impacted by Drew Dalman signing
3. OG Jonah Jackson
Jackson was a Pro Bowl player next to Johnson with the Detroit Lions, but he is a bit of a wild card after playing in just four games with the Los Angeles Rams and getting essentially benched one year into a three-year contract worth over $50 million.
With Dalman alongside him, Jackson will get some extra protection on the offensive line. Last year's Bears team showed that even solid individual starters can be let down by a line that lacks cohesion. Adding Dalman next to Jackson would give Chicago some extra buffer just in case the regression from 2024 is real.
2. RB D'Andre Swift
While Chicago has been often linked to replacements for the same player Johnson ditched once in Detroit, Smith is still the nominal starter despite a poor 2024 season. If the Lions will run it back with Swift, he is much more equipped for success with Dalman and his new buddies up front.
Dalman, who played a big part in helping turn Bijan Robinson into one of the best young backs in the game, has been a solid run blocker throughout his Atlanta tenure. With one more quality starter in the mix, Swift can get back to being the player we saw in Philadelphia.
1. QB Caleb Williams
Williams has a major issue with holding onto the ball for too long and inviting pressure, but he also played for a Bears team that had one of the worst offensive lines in the league. To lean on a phrase so overused on social media it sounds like a circular saw hitting a bunch of screws, both can be true.
With Dalman at center to help stabilize the offensive line, Williams will be in a spot much more conducive to NFL success than the meatgrinder he was thrown into last year. Now that he will have as much time to throw as he needs, Williams will be the perfect trigger man for Johnson's offense.