Following yet another eventful offseason, the Chicago Bears looked primed for a breakout season. Although football is never played on paper, we’ll take a deeper dive into the offseason activity, and which three positions have improved the most.
The offseason chaos is quickly coming to an end as both the major components of free agency and the 2025 NFL Draft are in the rearview mirror. Teams will now focus on their offseason programs before a six-week break until training camp. Change has become one of the few constants for organizations like the Chicago Bears. Despite retaining Ryan Poles as the team’s general manager for a fourth season, new head coach Ben Johnson’s new mentality has been almost as visible as his new coaching staff in the early months of his tenure.
Johnson and Poles didn’t take long to deliver on their promise to upgrade in the trenches. Between free agency and the draft, the Bears spent most of their resources on both sides of the lines. If the Super Bowl wasn’t evident enough, the best teams in the league often have the best lines on both sides of the ball.
Once they take the field for Week 1 in the regular season, their goal will be solely to earn their first winning season since 2018. With the regular season still four months away, we’ll look back at the offseason and discuss three of the roster’s most improved areas.
1. Offensive Line
Heading into free agency, Trey Smith was a name all Bears fans circled on their list of likely targets. A few days into the combine, the Kansas City Chiefs surprised most by slapping the franchise tag on the 25-year-old. Count me in as one of the many people who grew immediately skeptical of the Bears’ plan moving forward. Shortly after the combine concluded, Chicago swung a pair of trades on back-to-back days, landing Jonah Jackson and Joe Thuney.
The acquisition of Jackson drew plenty of criticism, especially considering how much was left on his contract, which was signed a year earlier. It felt like the Rams were looking for a way out, and the Bears gave it to them without much of a fight. In reality, Johnson simply wanted a player he could trust and believed was still at the top of their game. Jackson is still just 28 years old and just one year removed from signing a lucrative free agent deal in Los Angeles. It’s not out of the question that returning to a familiar scheme could bring out his Pro Bowl potential.
The Thuney deal came as much more of a surprise to the NFL world. Nobody knew that he was available. Until The Athletic’s Diana Russini reported that the Bears were having trade discussions with the Chiefs, everyone assumed the Chiefs would find a way to make it work. For a future fourth-round pick (that the Bears already recouped), they’ll be getting one of the best interior linemen in all of football. Granted, he’s 32 years old, but he’s exactly what this group needed in the short term.
Less than a week later, Chicago struck earlier in free agency, landing center Drew Dalman, who has been one of Pro Football Focus’s best centers over the last three seasons. Suddenly, all three starting spots on the interior offensive line had been upgraded considerably.
After striking out on a first-round tackle in the draft, the Bears added Ozzy Trapilo in the second round and Luke Newman in the sixth round. For those counting at home, that’s five new additions to the (likely) 53-man roster.
In a matter of days, the Bears went from having no answers on the interior to arguably one of the best starting three in the league. Health will be key, especially for Jackson and Dalman, but their improved depth behind those players should give fans additional hope. Assuming Darnell Wright can take the next step in Year 3, the Bears could have their first above-average offensive line in nearly a decade. We’ll see how the tackle spots play out, but for now, I’m projecting Trapilo to end up on the right side backing up Wright until next year when they’ll have another full offseason program to figure out a long-term solution at left tackle.
Projected Depth Chart:
Left Tackle: Braxton Jones/Kiran Amegadjie
Left Guard: Joe Thuney/Luke Newman
Center: Drew Dalman/Ryan Bates
Right Guard: Jonah Jackson/Bill Murray
Right Tackle: Darnell Wright/Ozzy Trapilo
Junfu Han / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images
2. Pass Catchers
It’s incredible to think back on the Bears’ depth chart at the wide receiver position three offseasons ago. Going from Darnell Mooney, Byron Pringle, and Equanimeous St. Brown to what the team has now is almost unfathomable. It started with the massive draft trade that brought them DJ Moore and a bevy of high-round draft picks. Last year, they added Rome Odunze (and Keenan Allen for a season), and now, they’ve added Olamide Zaccheaus and Devin Duvernay in free agency, and Luther Burden III with the 39th overall pick in this year’s draft. Add in the return of Cole Kmet and the selection of Colston Loveland with a Top 10 pick, and this group has a chance to impress.
Unlike last year, the offensive coaching staff has a plan. Johnson and his staff have been very intentional about adding players with speed. Both Zaccheaus and Burden are low 4.4 players, while Duvernay is even faster than that. Instead of having two big bodies and Moore at receiver, they have players who are intentional with their routes, can separate, and offer different skill sets. Kmet can play more inline now, while Loveland will be the seam stretcher. It might take some time for the rookie tight end to catch on, but Johnson’s ability to get a Top 10 season out of Sam LaPorta in his rookie year should give fans plenty of hope.
This group was intentionally put together to stress the defense in almost every way imaginable. Moore should start to see more opportunities down the field. Burden will become the screen/in-space playmaker. Odunze profiles as the big body in this offense, which should lead to plenty of 50-50 balls and a possession receiver-type role. Zaccheaus will also play his role on offense and special teams, as will Duvernay. Loveland might be the biggest X-factor, though. If Johnson can find a way to get him going early, it will add a completely different dimension to this group. Over the past two seasons in Detroit, LaPorta’s snap counts ranked just below Amon-Ra St. Brown for first on the team as a pass-catcher. Don’t underestimate Kmet’s usage, though. In a similar role, Brock Wright still played above 50% of the snap total in 2024. This deep and dynamic group should have the personnel to out-scheme any defense in the league.
Projected Depth Chart:
WR1: DJ Moore/Olamide Zaccheaus
WR2: Rome Odunze/ Devin Duvernay
WR3: Luther Burden III/Tyler Scott (if they keep a sixth body)
TE: Colston Loveland/Cole Kmet/Durham Smythe
3. Defensive Line
Chicago went from one strong defensive mind to another regarding who runs their defense. Matt Eberflus might not have been a good head coach, but there’s little reason to overlook his ability as a defensive coordinator. One of Johnson’s first big moves was hiring a veteran defensive mind who could run the defense. That’s where Dennis Allen comes in. Like Eberflus, he’s a bad head coach, but one of the top defensive minds in the game. Considering Allen has two failed stints as head coach, there’s a strong chance he’ll never sniff another head coaching opportunity again. If all goes well in Chicago, he could be here for a long time.
Although the two coaches have similar personnel preferences, their philosophies could differ significantly. Allen will get creative up front and leverage his big bodies in a rotation. That means players like Gervon Dexter Sr., Dayo Odeyingbo, and Shemar Turner could all play both edge and tackle in 2025. He likes to simulate pressure while playing primarily man-coverage. It’s a much more aggressive style of defense,
That’s why upgrading in the trenches was necessary for Allen to run his scheme effectively. In free agency, they went out and added Odeyingbo and Grady Jarrett. In the second round, they drafted Turner, who can play inside or outside. He spent most of his collegiate career as an edge rusher, but packed on 30 pounds in 2024 to slide inside to tackle. This group is probably a player or two short, but if there’s a defensive coordinator with the creativity to make it work in Year 1, it’s Allen. Don’t rule out a one-year veteran free agent deal closer to the start of the season. There are still plenty of suitable names.
Projected Depth Chart:
DE: Montez Sweat/Austin Booker/Dominique Robinson
3T: Grady Jarrett/Shemar Stewart/Chris Williams/Zacch Pickens
NT: Andrew Billings/Gervon Dexter Sr./Jonathan Ford
DE: Dayo Odeyingbo/Daniel Hardy