There are a lot of worried Chicago Bears fans, as four key starters from the secondary may end up signing elsewhere in free agency.
One of the biggest names who could be gone from Chicago is safety Kevin Byard, and Jaquan Brisker as well, which would leave the safety positions in shambles. ESPNÂ NFL writer Matt Bowen ranked his top 50 free agents for the 2026 offseason and named the best fits with the Bears, including one safety who could replace Byard: Los Angeles Rams safety Kam Curl.
"Both of Chicago's starting safeties (Jaquan Brisker and Kevin Byard III) are free agents, opening up some spots. In coordinator Dennis Allen's defense, Curl can play as an interchangeable safety and improve the Bears' run defense. And don't be surprised if the team brings back Byard to join him, too."
Would Kam Curl make that kind of difference for the Bears?
Bears fans might not like hearing Curl's name, since he was the one who essentially ended Chicago's season by nabbing one of Caleb Williams' three interceptions in the NFC Divisional Round loss. Curl finished the regular season with a career-high 122 tackles, five pass deflections, two interceptions, two sacks, two tackles for loss, two quarterback hits, and one forced fumble in 17 games.
The advantage of Curl over Byard is that he is younger, at 26, and might be a better investment in the long haul. Curl, while inconsistent at times in coverage, is neck-and-neck with Pro Football Focus's 2025 overall grades, ranking 16th with 73.1, and Byard 15th with 74.2.
Brisker is worth letting walk in free agency as he wasn't the best in coverage, so the Bears should be fine without him and can always re-sign C.J. Gardner-Johnson to a smaller deal and fill in at safety if they wanted to. The Bears have to get younger on defense, so while Byard is an All-Pro, his coverage skills aren't quite there, and he was better known for grabbing an NFL-best seven, which covered up some of the flaws in his game.
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Chicago would be smart to look at Kurl and draft another safety in the first two rounds of the 2026 NFL Draft as long-term solutions at safety if they can't get Byard back.