This past offseason, the Chicago Bears took a chance on former Indianapolis Colts defensive end Dayo Odeyingbo by signing him to a three-year deal worth $48 million. It was an effort from Ryan Poles to try and shore up an area that's been a sore spot for a little while now.
Unfortunately for the Bears, Odeyingbo had yet to break out in 2025 and, in the Week 9 win over the Cincinnati Bengals, he suffered a season-ending Achilles injury. Without Odeyingbo now for the year, the Bears are going to heavily depend on a preseason standout and fan favorite who's been waiting for his shot.
Enter: 2024 fifth-round pick Austin Booker.
Austin Booker now has the golden opportunity he's been waiting for
The Bears traded up to get Booker in last year's draft and the Kansas product has been patiently waiting for his legitimate opportunity to shine. Now, he just might have it. The Bears don't have another obvious option to come in and replace Odeyingbo.
It's Booker.
Last season, Booker played just 27 percent of snaps as a rookie. This season, he's been shelved for most of the year with an injury. He was activated prior to the matchup with Cincinnati, and boy did the Bears need him in that wild win.
Against the Bengals, Booker got his first game action of 2025 and played 37 snaps. He came up big with a sack, a pressure and two tackles on those snaps.
Going forward, the former Jayhawk will have a lot more pressure on him. Granted, the Bears very well could go make a last-minute deal before the trade deadline (and they should, for that matter).
Pressures have been hard to come by this year and the Bears are now down a starting defensive end. Whether or not Odeyingbo has been consistent is irrelevant at this point. They need more depth.
First and foremost, though, they need Booker to step up and shine. If all goes according to plan, Booker gets a hefty amount of consistent snaps now, going forward and proves Poles' decision to trade up for him to have been a smart one.
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Booker has been someone fans have wanted to see more of since he first hit the field as a rookie. He's been a preseason standout for each of his two years in the NFL and, now, his opportunity to show out in the regular season has finally arrived.