Bears' AJ Epenesa Workout Suggests Chicago Still Doesn't Trust Its Edge Plan

The Bears worked out AJ Epenesa, a sign Chicago may not trust its current edge group as much as Ben Johnson and Ryan Poles have publicly suggested yet.

Chicago Bears general manager Ryan Poles. | David Banks-Imagn Images

The overwhelming expectation going into this offseason was that the Chicago Bears would make a significant addition to their edge rusher room.

But after the first wave of free agency and the 2026 NFL Draft, the Bears have yet to make any moves, which is perplexing when you consider just how shaky things are opposite Montez Sweat.

When asked about the edge rusher group after the draft, head coach Ben Johnson said he believed Chicago's solutions for improving a pass-rush that finished tied for the seventh-fewest sacks and the second-worst pass-rush win rate in the NFL last season boiled down to two things: better coaching and guys stepping up, and more specifically, Dayo Odeyingbo, Austin Booker and Shemar Turner.

"We are excited about the guys that ended up finishing the season on IR, the trajectory that they were on, both Dayo and Shemar," Johnson said. "When you look at it from the start of the season to the point where they both got injured, we saw growth and we saw them trending in the right direction, in terms of what we want to see on game day."

"I think you saw tremendous growth from (Austin) Booker when we were finally able to get him back (healthy), as well," Johnson went on to add. "The combination of us being able to coach better and those guys taking the next step as part of this system, I think we have some pretty good pieces to work with."

But general manager Ryan Poles did leave the door open for the team to make more additions, although we weren't sure if Poles' comment was just GM speak or if that was actually something Chicago was considering.

"Like I've said before, with any position, we're going to stay active, see what opportunities pop up," Poles said. "If we can improve our football team, we'll do it."

We now know he was serious.

Bears' actions speak louder than words

Buffalo Bills defensive end AJ Epenesa. | Mark Konezny-Imagn Images

Brad Biggs of the Chicago Tribune reported in a recent mailbag that the Bears brought in former Buffalo Bills edge rusher AJ Epenesa for a workout. There has been no indication that a signing is imminent, though.

Epenesa had a down season in 2025 with just 2.5 sacks, but he did tally six or more in each of the previous three campaigns. Epenesa is only still available because the Cleveland Browns pulled out of a free-agent deal with him because of concerns about his physical. What those concerns were are still a mystery.

Putting the specific player aside for now, the Bears' interest in Epenesa shows the team is not as content with its current edge rusher group as Chicago has let on — and that's a good thing.

After all, Booker, Turner and Odeyingbo are all question marks for different reasons and the Bears should not be content with their options across from Sweat, and that's especially true with the team having Super Bowl aspirations in 2026.

Granted, Epenesa isn't guaranteed to solve the Bears' issue, but he would at least give Chicago another option and that's all fans can ask for after what has been a disappointing offseason at edge rusher.