The Chicago Bears did exactly what they needed to do to make the roster Super Bowl-ready with their trade for defensive tackle Jeffery Simmons.
Chicago acquired Simmons and a Day 3 pick from the Tennessee Titans. The Bears gave up two first-round picks and their own Day 3 selection to get their guy.
Everything has changed with the Bears since adding Simmons, as it will make a huge difference to the defensive line and how the defense in general will look. Here is an in-depth look at how the depth chart will look now that Simmons is on the team.
Bears' updated defensive depth chart after the Jeffery Simmons trade
DE - Montez Sweat, Daniel Hardy
DT - Grady Jarrett, Neville Gallimore, Jordan van den Berg, Jayden Loving
DT - Jeffery Simmons, Kentavius Street, Shemar Turner
DE - Austin Booker, James Lynch
LB - T.J. Edwards, D'Marco Jackson, Keyshaun Elliott
LB - Devin Bush, Noah Sewell, Jack Sanborn
CB - Jaylon Johnson, Josh Blackwell, Clark Phillips
CB - Tyrique Stevenson, Malik Muhammad
NB - Kyler Gordon
S - Dillon Thieneman, Elijah Hicks
S - Cam Lewis, Skyler Thomas
Simmons instantly upgrades a defensive tackle position that has actually been decent overall this season. The Bears have been looking for a replacement for Gervon Dexter after trading him to the Atlanta Falcons.
Kentavius Street was one of the Bears' starting defensive tackles alongside Grady Jarrett. That has obviously changed, as Street is now a rotational player on the defensive line.
Bears defensive coordinator Dennis Allen has been a big fan of Street, so he'll keep using him on the defensive line. It could, though, affect how much playing time other guys like Neville Gallimore, Shemar Turner, Jordan van den Berg, and Jayden Loving get.
How will Jeffery Simmons affect the look of Bears' defense in 2026?
Allen has leaned heavily on blitzing over the last few weeks because of issues on the defensive line. Dayo Odeyingbo is on IR, and Montez Sweat is just coming back from his two-game suspension. Kyler Gordon has played a major role in the Bears' increased blitzing, picking up four sacks in the last two games.
The hope is that, with Simmons entering the picture, Allen can return to his four-person pass rush and send Gordon back into pass coverage. Simmons is third in the NFL among interior defensive linemen in pressures with 24 and leads all defensive tackles in sacks since 2025 with 15.
This will help the Bears' pass rush in the middle, but it should open things up for the defensive ends. Austin Booker is tied for the team lead with four sacks, but Sweat and Odeyingbo have been inconsistent this season. Daniel Hardy has done a nice job replacing Sweat and Odeyingbo in the last two games.
If anything, though, Simmons is actually helping the Bears' secondary more than anything. Jaylon Johnson and Tyrique Stevenson have struggled this season, so having Gordon drop back into coverage more should help their pass defense somewhat.
Read more: Bears' next big move after Jeffery Simmons trade is setting up obvious reunion
The hope is that key injured players like Odeyingbo and safety Coby Bryant can return soon for the Bears. If Chicago can get those guys back, along with Simmons and the other starters on defense, this team will be impossible to play against.
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