We share your Reacts poll results on the free agency splash you want to see the Bears make.
According to Over The Cap, the Chicago Bears currently have $78,335,157 available in salary cap space, but more importantly, they have $66,248,878 in effective cap space, which is the amount expected after they lock up their 2024 draft class and have the top 51 players on the roster accounted for.
Even after a Jaylon Johnson contract gets done (or a franchise tag), the Bears will still have a healthy number to play with as they look to bolster their roster in free agency. Johnson could get a deal with an average north of $20 million annually, but the structure of the first year may not be that high. So even if that deal chops the Bears down to $46 million in effective cap for 2024, they’re still in a good place.
A few days ago, we asked you guys to tell us which one big splash move you were hoping to see, and an edge rusher won out by a wide margin.
Signing a top defensive end to work opposite Montez Sweat would be trouble for opposing offenses to scheme against, and it would line up with what new defensive coordinator Eric Washington said at his introductory press conference.
“We are going to be a team that generates pressures with our front four,” Washington said. “We’re going to build the best pass rush in football.”
Around Super Bowl week, some rumors popped up about the Bears being interested in Danielle Hunter, as it seems like the Vikings won’t re-sign him. He’d look fantastic in Navy and Orange, plus the opportunity to play his former team twice a year can be a motivating factor, but he’s probably looking for an average annual salary in the $25 million range.
The Bears could make that splash, but a slightly smaller splash could come from the Texans‘ Jonathan Greenard, who may be looking for about $20 million a year, or the Jets’ Bryce Huff, who may come in around $15M.
My preferred “big money splash” would be center with Denver’s Lloyd Cushenberry. He’s 26 years old with 57 career starts and would be the veteran presence Chicago needs in the middle of the offense. He’s a good athlete, played in a zone-blocking scheme, and is a good pass blocker. Cushenberry will likely command something in the neighborhood of $13M a year, but it would fill arguably the biggest hole on the roster.
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