The Chicago Bears are clearly prioritizing their offensive line this offseason, executing a pair of trades in to bring in two veterans over the last 24 hours.
On Tuesday, the Bears sent a 2025 6th round pick to the Los Angeles Rams in exchange for guard Jonah Jackson. This was then followed up on Wednesday with a trade between Chicago and Kansas City which will see former All-Pro guard Joe Thuney join the Bears in exchange for a 2026 4th rounder.
Neither trade can officially be processed until the start of the NFL’s new league year on March 12th, but the message to fans is clear: Chicago wants to win in the trenches under new head coach Ben Johnson.
With the start of free agency still a week away, Chicago has less money to work with, but are still in a good position to continue to add to their roster. Prior to the deals, the Bears had a projected $80M in cap space. Now, they have roughly $45.3M remaining, which ranks 13th best amongst NFL franchises.
It also means, they can continue to add pieces such as centre Drew Dalman, whom the team has been linked to for much of the offseason. The club gave up a league high 68 sacks on rookie QB Caleb Williams in 2024, so change was inevitable. But with Teven Jenkins, Coleman Shelton and Matt Pryor also set to become free agents, GM Ryan Poles clearly didn’t want to wait to begin addressing his team’s needs on the interior of their line.
When asked about the Bears priorities this offseason at the NFL combine, head coach Ben Johnson told reporters that he wouldn’t rule out the team looking to turn the page quickly on the 2024 version of the roster. “I mean, there are a number of teams that did that [overhaul the OL] last year. The Panthers come to mind when they went out in free agency and got a couple of top guards, really changed the dynamic of their offense. You saw them clicking there in the second half of the season once they really started to gel. There’s no question that you can change the dynamic of the room just like that. That particular room, it does take time for five guys to come together. Especially if you have to deal with attrition and injuries for five guys to be working on the same page.”
Jackson (98.5%) and Thuney (98.2%) had the two highest pass block win rates at the guard position in 2024 out of 94 eligible players. A fact that will undoubtedly help with Williams’ development as a passer, by buying him additional time in the pocket in his sophomore campaign.
Thuney is set to make $16M this season, before a becoming a free agent at the end of 2025. Meanwhile, Jackson will earn $17.5M, and will become a free agent in 2027. His deal does however feature a potential out in 2026 should things not work out in the Windy City.
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