Teven Jenkins' NFL career is continuing with the Cleveland Browns as Jenkins officially signed with the Browns on Thursday.
During the 2024 NFL season, it became increasingly clear with each passing week that the Bears and Jenkins were headed toward a divorce. Despite Jenkins expressing a desire to remain with the Bears last offseason, by the time the season concluded, the writing was on the wall that the Bears were ready to move on.
As the Bears aggressively upgraded their offensive line earlier this month by trading for Jonah Jackson and Joe Thuney and signing Drew Dalman, Jenkins' free-agent market developed slowly. Jenkins, prior to signing with the Browns, had interest from the Seattle Seahawks and Cincinnati Bengals.
With Jenkins no longer on the Bears' roster, the team has all but closed the book on the Ryan Pace era.
Teven Jenkins signing with the Browns officially closes the book on the Bears’ 2021 draft class, Ryan Pace’s last one as GM. The only Pace picks remaining on the roster are Cole Kmet and Jaylon Johnson. pic.twitter.com/oIvWL3tOPM
— Kevin Fishbain (@kfishbain) March 20, 2025
No players remain from the Bears' 2021 NFL Draft Class
For as much excitement as there was for the Bears taking Justin Fields and Jenkins with their first two selections of the 2021 NFL Draft, neither remained with the team beyond their rookie contract. Fields finally has a team willing to commit to him to the tune of $40MM over the next season as the New York Jets believe the former first-round pick could be their answer at quarterback. Meanwhile, for Jenkins, the biggest question remains if he can stay available during the season. If so, he has a chance to quickly restock his value.
Like Jenkins, the Bears had little to no interest in bringing back Larry Borom after the improvements made to their offensive line. Borom signed with the Miami Dolphins this offseason. After being traded by the Bears during the season, Khalil Herbert signed with the Indianapolis Colts this offseason.
Dazz Newsome is currently out of the NFL, playing with the Canadian Football League and Thomas Graham was released by the Pittsburgh Steelers prior to the start of last season.
Khyiris Tonga has carved a career for himself as a depth piece for teams in need of defensive line help. After spending the 2024 season with the Arizona Cardinals, he signed with the New England Patriots earlier this offseason.
It's fitting that there is no longer any player from the Bears' 2021 draft class with the team. The draft class reeked of desperation as both Pace and Matt Nagy were clearly on the hot seat. If anything, the outcome of this draft class just proves that the Bears stuck with the Pace regime one year too long.