The NFL season has reached that point where the trade deadline is a distant memory, and some teams—likely including the Bears—are shifting their focus to the future. With their current season all but over, the Bears are probably setting their sights on the NFL Draft and free agency.
Recently, Matt Holder from Bleacher Report predicted that the Bears would prioritize bolstering their offensive line to protect Caleb Williams this offseason. Holder identified Kansas City Chiefs star right guard Trey Smith as the ideal free-agent target for Chicago this spring. Here’s what he had to say:
“Kansas City Chiefs guard Trey Smith—the second-ranked player on B/R’s early 2025 free-agent board—should be high atop Chicago’s wish list. He’s an above-average pass protector and a legitimate catalyst in the running game.”
Smith has played 687 snaps at right guard this season without allowing a single sack, making him easily one of the best guards in the entire league.
The Bears will be calculated in free agency.
Ryan Poles plans to take a careful approach in finding a replacement for Nate Davis. On Sunday morning, he mentioned that the team will reevaluate their free agency strategy after missing on Davis. While the Bears are projected to have top-5 cap space according to Spotrac, it’s possible they’ll prioritize building their offensive line through the draft.
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However, it seems likely the Bears will use a combination of free agency and the draft to strengthen the line for their young quarterback. A balanced mix of experienced veterans and talented rookies on the offensive line would be a smart approach. Depth is another key area they are need to address.
Trey Smith won’t be cheap.
If Poles makes Trey Smith a priority, it would be a major boost for the team. That said, Smith’s projected four-year, $74 million contract (as estimated by Spotrac) would be a big time move by the Bears. But this might give the Bears an edge over the Chiefs—who are facing cap issues.
Poles is going to sponge older players from other teams again and yet he cannot accept a few good players from the Pace era. Talk about strange. Have Cunningham build the Bears through the draft and UDFAs. No more charity picks, no more injured picks, and no more pure physical traits only picks. Focus on performance and production picks, not on plausible or potentially possible picks. Just like Pace, stop being cutesy or gutsy because I do not trust your instincts or intuition.
The OL free agent market is pretty decent for next year. I’m not against buying an OL as oppose to drafting one. Remember when we got Ruben Brown and John Tait, couple years later we were in the SB. Not saying the same magic will happen. Not signing Allen and Davis alone gets us like $33M. Use that to sure up the IOL. And then if you want, draft one to develope.
Build through the draft. Don’t pay big money to Guards (and CBs). We drafted WR Dazz Newsome 5 picks before Trey Smith. We need to draft better and prioritize the lines.
Guard has become a more expensive position over the years. The top 5 guards in the NFL all earn over $20m per season, and the next guy on that list, Zack Martin, is at 18.5m and is one of the best guards to ever play the game. Teams have figured out that you have to have solid guard play because if not, the pressure up the middle is inescapable. Yes, the blind side matters and is important, but the interior rushers get to the QB much quicker and can F-up a gameplan faster than anyone else. See the current Bears… Read more »
Yes