Bears Give LB Tremaine Edmunds Permission to Seek Trade This Offseason

Chicago Bears LB Tremaine Edmunds has been granted permission to seek a trade this offseason. | Joseph Maiorana-Imagn Images

The Bears have granted standout linebacker Tremaine Edmunds permission to seek a trade this offseason, according to Brad Biggs of The Chicago Tribune.

Edmunds, 27, is entering the final year of his contract in 2026, when he’s due to make $15 million. He’s spent the last three seasons in Chicago after signing a four-year, $72 million deal with the franchise in 2023.

If the Bears can’t find a trade partner, it’s possible Edmunds will be cut. He carries a dead cap hit of just $2.437 million, and if he’s released, the Bears would save $15 million.

In 2025, Edmunds played in 13 games for the Bears. He led the defense with 112 tackles, while adding four interceptions, one sack and one fumble recovery. He had an outstanding start to last season, but suffered a groin injury late into the campaign and wasn’t quite as sharp when he made his way back to the field.

A two-time Pro Bowl linebacker, Edmunds had nine interceptions and 335 tackles in 45 games across three seasons in Chicago, but it appears his time with the franchise could be nearing its end as the team aims to get out of the red. As it stands, the Bears have -$4.1 million in cap space and -$8.3 million in effective cap space, per OverTheCap. Moving off of Edmunds’s contract would put the Bears back into the black.

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