The Chicago Bears are going to enter the new league year with plenty of areas to address on their roster.
There are holes on both sides of the line of scrimmage and at the skilled positions. For the 2026 Bears to repeat as NFC North Champions and make the playoffs, general manager Ryan Poles must utilize everything he has learned up to this point in his career to retool his team.
Poles, who is in his fifth year as Chicago's GM, has already made some tough decisions, trading away wide receiver DJ Moore and releasing linebacker Tremaine Edmunds. The Bears’ lead decision maker also had starting center Drew Dalman unexpectedly retire after he received a three-year, $42 million contract. The position has since been addressed after trading a 2027 fifth-round pick to the New England Patriots for veteran Garrett Bradbury.
The Bears will have to navigate more tough decisions as the NFL legal tampering period begins at noon ET on March 9. One position group that should be straightforward to address is safety.
How Ryan Poles will attack safety position for Bears
Currently, Kevin Byard III, Jaquan Brisker, Jonathan Owens, and Elijah Hicks are set to hit free agency. C.J. Gardner-Johnson, who primarily played the nickel last season but also has position versatility, can also be included on the list.
Poles should make it a priority to re-sign Byard, and both parties have expressed publicly that they would like to make that happen. ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler wrote that the Bears “will attempt to re-sign Byard over the weekend but will let Jaquan Brisker walk.”
If that's the scenario, which is likely, the second order of business to address strong safety would be to draft one.
Starting with Byard, Pro Football Focus projects a two-year, $9 million-per-year contract for the veteran safety, with $13.5 million guaranteed and $18 million total. Byard is 32 years old and shouldn't be aiming to secure a huge payday on what could potentially be his last NFL contract.
Byard led the NFL with seven interceptions and played 1,219 total defensive snaps. He was a captain last season, someone who broke down the huddles before games and represented the defense well every time he spoke to the media.
He still presents plenty of value for this Bears team, even more so now after key players like Moore, Edmunds, and Dalman are gone.
For the other safety position, the draft provides plenty of options in what is being regarded as a deep 2026 class. The first round might be too rich to select a safety, but the Bears’ No. 89 overall pick in the third round could be a perfect opportunity to take South Carolina's Jalon Kilgore.
Just looking at the physical makeup and combine scores, he's similar to Brisker.
Brisker: 6-foot-1, 204 pounds
40-yard Dash: 4.49 seconds
10-yard Split: 1.52 seconds
Vertical Jump: 34.5”
Broad Jump: 10’ 4”
Bench Press: 22 Reps
Kilgore: 6-foot-1, 210 pounds
40-yard Dash: 4.4 seconds
10-yard Split: 1.56 seconds
Vertical Jump: 37”
Broad Jump: 10’ 10”
Bench Press: 16 Reps
In Kilgore's three seasons at South Carolina, he registered eight interceptions, 18 pass breakups, seven total pressures, and 146 tackles, according to Pro Football Focus. While he was at South Carolina, he played primarily in the slot, which highlights his athletic ability.
However, his size and movement skills project him as an NFL safety. He's just one of many options the Bears could consider in this upcoming draft.
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Of course, re-signing Byard and drafting a player only fixes two spots on a roster that will likely have four safeties active on the 53. But Poles has a blueprint in front of him to address the back end of his defense.