As NFL free agency approaches, moves are being made. The Chicago Bears' offensive line was affected by one move.
Pro Bowl center Drew Dalman informed the team that he is retiring from the NFL. The 27-year-old offensive lineman signed a three-year, $42 million contract with the Bears last March and had $28 million guaranteed.
General manager Ryan Poles will have to navigate an offseason with two glaring holes on the offensive line, center and left tackle, find players to upgrade the pass rush, figure out what to do with four safeties who are not under contract, identify a plan for DJ Moore’s future and do this all without his right-hand man, Ian Cunningham, who is now the general manager of the Atlanta Falcons.
This will be one of the most challenging periods of Poles’ career as a GM, and the moves he makes or doesn’t make will drastically impact the Bears’ aspirations to become a consistent contender in the NFL. Other teams have made decisions on players who, no doubt, can help the Bears.
Multiple moves made could impact what Ryan Poles does with the Bears
According to NFL Network’s Ian Rapport and Tom Pelissero, the Cincinnati Bengals will not franchise tag defensive end Trey Hendrickson, making him an unrestricted free agent. ESPN’s Adam Schefter announced that the Minnesota Vikings are open to trading Pro Bowl edge rusher Jonathan Greenard. And of course, every team that needs a pass rusher is keeping tabs on Maxx Crosby.
All these options are enticing and worth exploring, but Poles must be strategic and disciplined before committing to any move. The Bears are not just a pass rusher away from winning a Super Bowl, but their window to win a Lombardi Trophy is open.
Both lines must be addressed. Same with the secondary. Tremaine Edmunds is likely gone as well, which creates a hole at linebacker.
Head coach Ben Johnson touched on the complications that come with weighing the long-term versus the short-term when considering the salary cap last week at the 2026 NFL Scouting Combine.
“I think that’s a balancing act, and I think that’s where Ryan and Matt Feinstein, Jeff King, those guys do a great job keeping the big picture in mind of what we’re trying to do short term and long term and balancing act,” Johnson said. “You might have an off-the-wall idea that you’ve kind of got to talk it through, of what consequences might be if you went down that road, and so that’s this time of year. You’re trying to, as I’ve been saying all day long, trying to accumulate the best 90-man roster you possibly can.
We need it to be as competitive as it’s ever been so that we take the next step. I know Ryan, and I see our current roster, the guys that are under contract, very much in the same lens, and we’re totally committed to whatever it takes to get better.”
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Poles is now in his fifth year as the general manager of the Chicago Bears, and he will have to utilize everything he has learned up to this point in his career to ensure his team doesn’t fall behind but instead takes the next steps forward as an organization.