Day one of free agency might not have gone how many of us expected it to, but there is no denying that the Bears are much better now than they were on Sunday. They added two starting linebackers in Tremaine Edmunds and T.J. Edwards (who has the potential to become one of the biggest steals in this free agency class), a starting defensive end in DeMarcus Walker, and a starting guard in Nate Davis.
This was Ryan Poles' first chance to show what he values on the open market, and he seems to have passed the test with flying colors. He values ascending players who have produced at a high level. At the same time, he has also not fallen into the trap of overpaying mid-tier players at positions of need.
Poles clearly had a plan for how he would attack this offseason, and it seems to have gone off without a hitch thus far. The front office needed to keep the momentum on their side after dealing with the draft's top pick last week, and they have done a solid job of doing so. They had more money to burn than any team in the league, and they did so wisely on their first day.
With that said, there are a few interesting takeaways from the players who signed on the dotted line (and even more from those who didn't) on the first day of free agency.