Shopping for Bears in Indianapolis
Past ties in the NFL are tough to sever. Sometimes it's better not to sever them.
When Matt Eberflus came over to the Bears as head coach they started sorting through available leftovers from the Indianapolis Colts to fill out their Tampa-2 style of defense. They brought in defensive end Al-Quadin Muhammad and linebacker Matthew Adams as players who knew their defensive scheme.
Neither worked out well, especially Muhammad. The Bears know he's better than he showed based on his play with the Colts but his position depends greatly on supporting cast. The defensive front as a whole was lacking all year.
Muhammad had only one sack, three quarterback hits and one tackle for loss on 608 defensive plays, and lost his starting spot by Week 9. Adams had a few injuries and lost his spot to journeyman Joe Thomas.
Without much cash to spend in free agency, those two lower-cost free agents had to suffice as pickups from their old defense as they tried to fit empty slots.
Everything has changed this year. At one time it looked like the Bears would have over $100 million in cap space available this year and they still could if there are any salary cap cuts made.
However, the last cap projection by Overthecap.com is $92 million available for the Bears, still far more than any other team has.
They won't need to shop in the bargain basement this year in free agency, whether it's throughout the league or when looking at Eberflus' old team.
If Eberflus is still looking for a few contributors with the HITS principle in their blood, some players who defensive coordinator Alan Williams knows have knowledge of the system, they can bring in higher priced contributors from Indianapolis.
The Colts are about $13.2 million under the cap according to Overthecap.com so they can retain some free agents and not others, but their own coaching situation is entirely unclear. So it's no clear which of their free agents they'd want to keep, or even which players they'd dump for cap purposes.
They brought in Giants defensive coordinator Wink Martindale for an interview. Broncos defensive coordinator Ejiro Evero interviewed. Both have been 3-4 coaches. The Colts could wind up with a totally different emphasis on defense and with a 3-4 look, so they might not even want to retain many defensive free agents.
If they hire Jeff Saturday as coach, after the palace revolt and the pitchforks and torches are set down there is no telling what kind of defense they'll run.
Here are Colts on defense who Eberflus coached who could be available for the Bears come March.
1. CB Kenny Moore
He is not a free agent, but the previous sentence said "could be available," and not free agents. With the Colts only sitting in the middle against the cap and a different regime taking over, there is great speculation the 27-year-old slot cornerback could become a salary cap cut victim. He's not a huge cost problem at $7 million.
The Bears really could stand to add a good slot cornerback. They have trained Kyler Gordon at this but his best play came on the outside last year.
When the Colts season ended, here's what Moore told reporters about Eberflus leaving the team 11 months earlier:
"It definitely hit me hard. Eberflus was a coach I cherished deep down in my heart. He's the coach I wanted to play my hardest for. We had a great run with coach Eberflus."
Moore in 2022 had his worst season since becoming a starter but made the Pro Bowl in the previous season under Eberflus. Make no mistake, he'd be a perfect fit in Chicago.
2. DT DeForest Buckner
If they can wish for Moore, then why not Buckner, who also is not a free agent? The Bears could have their defensive line three-technique issues solved if they draft Jalen Carter but even then they do need a rotation up front. If they draft Will Anderson instead, then Buckner would be needed even more.
Buckner will turn 29 for this season and has several good years left. He would not be a fit in a Colts 3-4 as he is best used as an attacking one-gapper.
Buckner is less likely to become available to the Bears in some ways than Moore but in others he's more likely. Like Moore, he is not a free agent but all of the mock drafters love speculating about his name coming up in a trade if the Colts move up to No. 1 to take a quarterback. If he isn't traded, his cap hit of $19.7 million is a real place for any new Colts regime to start hacking. He'd be ideal for Chicago and no problem in terms of contract terms for a team with an abundance of cap space.
3. LB Bobby Okereke
He is a free agent and moved over from middle linebacker to replace Shaq Leonard as the weakside linebacker after the Colts star underwent back surgery in 2022. So Okereke has played both middle under Eberflus and the weakside this past season, and is a youngster at 26.
A third-round pick in 2019, he hasn't been the big playmaking type Leonard has been but he has produced four forced fumbles, five recoveries and three interceptions in 64 games. That's more ballhawking than any of the current Bears linebackers or Roquan Smith have done, and he's only been a starter for two years.
4. DE Yannick Ngakoue
Not exactly a Matt Eberflus player. He came after Eberflus left, but showed he can play in a 4-3 just like he did in a 3-4 in the past. He had 9 1/2 sacks last year for the Colts and 10 in a similar system for the Raiders the previous season. He had made 37 1/2 for four years with the Jaguars. Better yet from an Eberflus standpoint, he has 24 forced fumbles in his career. He'll be 28 this year and has a projected market value by Spotrac.com of $14.8 million a year. Pocket change for a team with $92 million or more available.
5. LB E.J. Speed
A backup for the Colts and a free agent, at 6-foot-3, 224 he would be a useful player behind the Bears starting linebackers and has started six times. He started just once under Eberflus but is much younger and a better fit for special teams than some of the backup Bears linebackers currently are. He would be young, inexpensive depth for a Bears defense that can stand to be faster and younger.
6. DE Tyquan Lewis
Muhammad hasn't worked out but that's not to say his second year would be the same if he had a different supporting cast. Then again, why not Lewis who also was a starter for six games under Eberflus in 2020 and 2021 with Indy? Like Muhammad, he was a member of the defensive end rotation. Perhaps they'd like his fit better as a 6-3, 277-pound run defender and pass rusher than they do Muhammad. He had five pass breakups, 38 tackles and 11 for loss in his last two years under Eberflus. Lewis was a Colts second-round pick in 2018.
Twitter: BearDigest@BearsOnMaven
