Windy City Gridiron
Following the Chicago Bears’ first playoff win in 15 seasons, the season ended in heartbreak with a 20-17 loss at home to the Los Angeles Rams. Although the season didn’t end the way fans were hoping for, there’s plenty of reason for optimism moving forward into the upcoming offseason. For starters, the Bears’ core players are in place. As of now, all 11 offensive starters are set to return, as is the majority of their depth chart. The defensive side of the ball is another story, but after a lackluster year on that side of the ball, maybe that’s not the worst thing.
Before we dive too far into the Bears’ cap situation and what they could do in March and April, let’s first take a deeper dive into their upcoming free agents. As it stands, Chicago is set to have 25 total free agents, but only 22 for whom the team holds no control rights heading into March. It’s important to note that additional moves will happen in the coming weeks, but for now, we’ll take a look at all 25 free agents and where they stand.
Unrestricted Free Agents (22)
The bulk of any team’s pending free agents will always be of the unrestricted variety. In short, barring a franchise tag (which won’t happen), all players are in line to test the market when the legal negotiation period starts on Monday, March 9th, at noon Eastern. Of the 22 names on this list, only four players are coming off their rookie deals, while 10 players were with the team for one year or less. History has shown that while general manager Ryan Poles isn’t afraid to sign players to an extension, most names who hit the market tend to leave.
Below you’ll see these 22 names broken down by each position and unit. 14 of their 22 unrestricted free agents are on the defensive side of the ball, with a large majority in the secondary. Of the defensive names, seven players started at least one game for the Bears in 2025. Most notably, all four safeties that were under contract for 2025 are set to be free agents.
Offensively, there are a few names worth mentioning, but none that profiled as primary starters for the team down the stretch run. There are a few depth pieces that might be nice to have back, but in total, none of what they are projected to lose are irreplaceable. At least in terms of continuity, that’s an excellent place for the offense to be. All things considered, there shouldn’t be any player too expensive not to retain, but as usual, expect Poles to be selective, especially on the defensive side of the ball, for a unit that needs multiple upgrades.
