8 Bears Entering Their Final Season in Chicago in 2026

With the Chicago Bears in the midst of their break before training camp after finishing off minicamp last week, we're taking a look at the Bears' roster to see which players might be in their final year with the team in 2026.

As things stand now, the Bears are slated to have over 30 of their own free agents to make decisions on next offseason, which means there will be plenty of guys leaving.

But those won't be the only players departing, as the Bears will inevitably cut ties with players under contract, whether that be through trades or releases.

Here's a look at eight notable players we don't expect to see in a Bears uniform in 2027. Five are going to be free agents while three are clear cut or trade candidates.

Note: All contract figures are courtesy of Over The Cap.

Tyrique Stevenson

Stevenson has seen his play decline in recent years and was bad enough in 2025 that he lost his starting job to Nahshon Wright.

Stevenson, who will be a free agent in 2027, can revive his career in 2026 as he competes against rookie Malik Muhammad for the same job he lost last season, but we'll have to see him get better before we believe it's possible.

Even if he plays phenomenal in 2026, the Bears are not going to pay him with so much already invested in Jaylon Johnson, and with Muhammad possibly waiting in the wings to take over.

Braxton Jones

Jones re-signed on a one-year deal with the Bears despite being benched last season, and it's not hard to see why.

Chicago offered Jones a clear path to a starting job after Ozzy Trapilo suffered a torn patellar tendon, and while he still has to win that job, all indications are Jones is ahead in the competition.

Jones' future will go one of two ways: he will rebound in 2026 and get paid well in 2027, or he'll struggle once again and will be relegated to a swing tackle role moving forward.

If the former unfolds, Jones has no shot to return to Chicago as long as Trapilo gets back healthy. If it's the latter scenario, we'd guess Chicago will have had enough of the former fifth-round selection and will let him walk in free agency.

D'Andre Swift

Swift has been an effective back for Chicago and he will form an elite one-two punch with Kyle Monangai in 2026. However, Swift's days in Chicago are likely numbered.

A 2027 free agent, Swift is likely to command a short-term but sizeable deal on the open market, assuming he can play at the level we have seen him play at the past three seasons.

Whether Monangai continues to emerge or not, we just don't see the Bears spending what it would take to keep Swift. Instead, Chicago will allocate its resources elsewhere and add Swift's replacement during the 2027 NFL Draft.

Cole Kmet

Kmet is the first player on this list who isn't a free agent in 2027, but the veteran does have a clear out via trade or release in what will be the final year of his contract.

Chicago restructured Kmet's deal earlier this offseason to create more cap space, but that also means his cap number for 2027 balloons to $15.4 million.

There is no way the Bears keep him on the books at that amount, especially with two young tight ends on the roster in Colston Loveland and 2026 draft pick Sam Roush.

Maybe Kmet takes a significant pay cut to stay, but if not, he'll likely be playing elsewhere in 2027.

Garrett Bradbury

Bradbury was acquired to replace Drew Dalman after his shocking retirement, and the veteran comes over in what is a contract year for him.

While Bradbury had a chance to be a multi-year solution when the Bears acquired him, the team has since drafted Logan Jones in the second round to be the long-term answer at the position.

It remains to be seen when Jones will be ready to take the reins of the starting job, but we would expect that to happen no later than the start of 2027, which will lead to Chicago letting Bradbury walk next offseason.

We wouldn't be shocked if Jones emerges as the starter in 2026 and Chicago turns around and trades Bradbury before the deadline this year.

Gervon Dexter

Dexter, who is in the final year of his rookie contract, has proven to be an impact pass rusher on the inside, but his run defense has left a lot to be desired.

According to Pro Football Focus, Dexter has posted run defense grades of 36.2, 60.3 and 44.0 during his career, which shows his clear struggles against the run.

There is likely to be some team out there that will ignore Dexter's one-dimensional game en route to giving him a big contract, but after dealing with it for four years, we don't see Chicago being willing to pay what it'll take to keep him.

Dayo Odeyingbo

After a disastrous first season with the Bears that saw him post just one sack in eight games before suffering a torn Achilles, the Bears had no choice but to keep Odeyingbo because of how his contract is structured.

But that won't be the case in 2027, as cutting Odeyingbo will only incur a $4.5 million dead-cap hit while saving $15 million.

Maybe Odeyingbo rebounds and Chicago ends up keeping him, but there has been nothing to suggest he's capable of doing that after posting just four sacks in 25 games the past two years. Not to mention, there's a good chance he won't be himself in his first year back from his second torn Achilles.

If it's status quo for Odeyingbo in 2026, he won't be with the Bears in 2027.

Grady Jarrett

Like Dexter, Jarrett was awful in run defense last season, and he didn't provide much as a pass-rusher, either, with the veteran tallying just 1.5 sacks.

If not for his contract that provided no reasonable out in 2026, Jarrett might be gone already.

With Jarrett set to turn 34 next April, his best days are likely behind him and there's a better chance than not that he'll be leaving in 2027, especially with his contract having an easy out.

Add us as a preferred source on Google