The Chicago Bears need another impactful defensive end opposite of Montez Sweat.
Throughout the 2024 season, the Bears' defense struggled to create consistent pressure. Sweat led the team in sacks (5.5) and total pressures (49) in what was considered a down year for the Bears' edge rusher.
For Bears' defensive coordinator Dennis Allen to succeed in his first year as the signal caller in Chicago, a counterpart for Sweat isn't just necessary, it's vital. Bears general manager Ryan Poles must come away with an impactful defensive end in free agency and he'll have plenty of different options at his disposal.
Shopping at the defensive line car store in free agency can create buyer's remorse, but if the vision is clear among the Bears' brass, strategic signings can be executed that will directly impact the defense this upcoming season.
Here are some of the players Poles will have available to him when the legal tampering period officially starts on March 10 at 12 p.m. ET.
Trade In
Trey Hendrickson
Hendrickson isn't a free agent, but with the Bengals giving him permission to seek a trade, he's too good of a player to not consider. The 6-foo-4, 270-pound defensive end had 17.5 sacks in back-to-back seasons. Since 2021, he has been a Pro Bowler and was a First-Team All-Pro in 2024.
The Bengals ended last season with 36 total sacks and Hendrickson was just .5 away from having half of that production. His consistency in applying pressure on opposing quarterbacks speaks for itself and would be a welcomed addition to the Bears' defense under Allen, who Hendrickson overlapped with for four seasons in New Orleans while Allen was the defensive coordinator.
To acquire Hendrickson (30), the Bears would have to make a trade offer. It's hard to gauge exactly what that would look like, but according to The Athletic, a first-round pick likely wouldn't be a part of a trade package when evaluating previous trades for pass rushers. The Athletic also stated that Hendrickson is "seeking an extension," which is something a potential team would have to consider.
The Chicago Bears have seven picks in the 2025 NFL Draft and two in the second round, picks 39 and 41. If the Bengals would accept just a second-round pick for Hendrickson, that's a deal worth making to acquire an elite defensive player.
Old Reliable
Khalil Mack
The Chicago Bears published a cryptic video on Friday that featured Mack on four different occasions. Obviously, the Bears' social media team isn't going to break the news that Mack is returning to Chicago, but it was interesting to see.
In all seriousness, a reunion with Mack would make sense in the short term. The Bears would add a productive player opposite of Sweat. Last season, the 34-year-old edge rusher finished with six sacks and 52 total pressures, according to Pro Football Focus, which would have led the Bears in both categories in 2024. Mack ended 2023 with one of the best seasons in his 11-year career, accumulating 17 sacks (career-high) and totaling 88 pressures (second-most).
Mack also played under Allen when he was a rookie in 2014. That was the last season Allen was a head coach with the Raiders. Since Mack has been with the Chargers for the past three seasons, he has only missed one game.
Despite Mack's age, adding him to the Bears' roster would provide not only stability but a proven run defender who can still get after the quarterback.
Prime Years
Josh Sweat
Against the Kanas City Chiefs in Super LIX, Josh had his best game of the season -- securing six total tackles and 2.5 sacks, both season-highs in the Eagles' dominant 40-22 victory. The 27-year-old pass rusher raised his level of play on the biggest stage and helped his team become champions.
Josh finished his 2024 campaign with eight sacks and 66 total pressures, which were both the second-highest marks in his 7-year career, according to PFF. The 6-foot-5, 265-pound pass rusher ended the 2023 season with 6.5 sacks and 70 total pressures (career-high) and finished with double-digit sacks for the first time in 2022 (11).
Production has been consistent throughout his NFL career but so has availability. Since 2019, Josh has only missed five games and has played 16 or more in five of his seven years in the league.
Before Josh went to Florida State, he dislocated his knee and tore his ACL during his senior year of high school. Despite the seriousness of the injury, he still managed to play in the season opener for FSU. He also had to have his meniscus repaired in the same knee during his sophomore year, but he still played in 12 games that season.
A pass-rushing duo of Sweats (Montez and Josh), who are still in the prime of their careers, should give Allen what he needs to operate his defense effectively.
Familiarity
Chase Young
What makes Young an enticing option for the Bears is his familiarity with key pieces on the team. Last season, the former No. 2 overall pick in the 2020 NFL Draft overlapped with Allen in New Orleans when he was the head coach. Young played in all 17 games and finished with 5.5 sacks, 31 combined tackles, three passes defensed and a forced fumble. According to PFF, he ended as a top-20 edge rusher with 66 quarterback pressures and a 14.6% pressure rate.
Young also played in Washington with Montez and the two were together for three full seasons (2020-2022). After Young's rookie season in 2020, when he was named the Defensive Rookie of the Year, he only played in 12 total games the next two seasons due to an ACL tear and a ruptured patellar tendon. Young and Montez were both traded during the 2023 season.
Since the serious knee injury, Young has only missed one game -- which was the Week 1 home-opener in 2023. At only 25 years old, the 6-foot-5, 265-pound defensive end still has a lot of football in front of him if he stays healthy.
If the Bears were to choose this route to upgrade the pass rusher position, the Bears could still use one of their top picks in this upcoming draft to add another playmaker on the defensive line. This past Super Bowl between the Eagles and Chiefs should have shown the rest of the league that you can never have too many disruptive linemen.
The Bears currently have the 15th-most cap space in the NFL at $45.67 million, according to OverTheCap. Poles still has money to work with and moves to make, so there is no reason he shouldn't come away with an impactful player on the defensive line given all of the options he has in front of him.
