Chicago Bears were really hoping that the team would be open to reuniting defensive coordinator Dennis Allen with his former player, New Orleans Saints defensive end Cameron Jordan, but that did not happen.
After rumors of the Bears and Jordan potentially coming together, the veteran defender decided to re-sign with the Saints and called it the final season of his career. While it hurt Bears fans to not be able to secure Jordan on a contract, it got even worse with the latest update.
The top 100 players in the NFL, voted by the players, finally have some names from the list on there. On social media, the NFL Media account shared the first two players, with Jordan ranking 100th.
Bears officially lost out on a top 100 player in the NFL
Jordan has put together quite the NFL career that should put him in the conversation for the Hall of Fame once he becomes eligible for it. He made eight Pro Bowls and was selected to three All-Pros. In his 15-year NFL career, he racked up 132 sacks and had seven seasons with 10 or more sacks, with his career high being 15.5 in 2019.
A lot of articles during the offseason had the Bears and Jordan being a potential match. Aside from the Allen connection, the Bears really needed help with their pass, and Jordan would have been a good fit in Allen's defense and could have easily contributed.
Now, the Bears find themselves in quite the situation at defensive end, which is the exact same one they were in last year. All the same players are back from 2025, with Montez Sweat, Austin Booker, and Dayo Odeyingbo being the top guys.
Bears fans shouldn't rely on 2025 second-round pick Shemar Turner being available for the team, as he is still recovering from his season-ending injury from last year. That leaves all hope on either Booker or Odeyingbo stepping up.
Booker has more hope for him as the team has high expectations for him to play well in Year 3 after 4.5 sacks in the last 10 games last year. Odeyingbo at least has Bears head coach Ben Johnson happy to see him back on the practice field after his injury last season, but he's got a lot to prove after one sack in eight games.
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The Bears had only 33 sacks in 17 games last year, so the lack of a pass rush could prevent this team from winning a Super Bowl. Jordan could have been that last piece to the puzzle, but now the pressure is even more on Booker and Odeyingbo to play well.
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