Devin McCourty Urges Bears to Pull Off Trade With Giants After Defensive Debacle in Week 1

As great as the Chicago Bears' offense looked in Week 1 against the Carolina Panthers, the defense was the polar opposite, which is leading Devin McCourty to suggest a trade between the New York Giants and Bears.

As the Bears were dropping 59 points on the helpless Panthers defense, Chicago's defense was routinely getting torched by Carolina's offense to the tune of 37 points 478 total yards.

The biggest culprit of that defensive letdown was the secondary, which surrendered 361 passing yards to Bryce Young. Taking it a step further, the Bears' two starting cornerbacks, Tyrique Stevenson and Jaylon Johnson, both struggled.

One way to improve the coverage is to see better cornerback play, but another avenue is to improve the pass-rush, which for the Bears only posted two sacks and eight pressures in Week 1.

Devin McCourty's Bears-Giants trade idea

New York Giants linebacker Kayvon Thibodeaux. — New York Giants linebacker Kayvon Thibodeaux (5) looks on during warmups prior to the game against the Dallas Cowboys at MetLife Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Brad Penner-Imagn Images | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

A former NFL defensive back who is now an analyst for NBC, McCourty suggests the Bears call the Giants about a trade for Kayvon Thibodeaux.

“If you’re going to score a lot of points, then it comes down to your pass defense and your pass defense is impacted by your pass rushers or your cover guys,” McCourty said on Up & Adams.

“To me, I know everybody in New York is excited — you might want to call down to the Giants," he added. "‘Hey, I know you got Abdul Carter, you got Brian Burns, what you thinking about with (Kayvon) Thibodeaux? Are you planning on extending him?’ Maybe that’s a call they make, you add a pass rusher.”

Why Giants may or may not trade Thibodeaux

New York Giants head coach John Harbaugh. — New York Giants head coach John Harbaugh looks on during the fourth quarter against the Dallas Cowboys at MetLife Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Vincent Carchietta-Imagn Images | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

If the Giants do decide to trade Thibodeaux at some point, it's not hard to see why.

The former No. 5 overall pick is entering the final year of his rookie contract and likely doesn't have a future with the team, and for a few reasons.

The first has to do with the fact that Thibodeaux has been a big disappointment. After an 11.5-sack campaign in 2023, Thibs has only eight over his last 23 contests, including just 2.5 in 10 games in 2025, and health has been a major issue, too.

Adding to all that, the Giants have a stellar pass-rush duo of Brian Burns and Abdul Carter, which further makes Thibodeaux expendable.

That said, a Thibodeaux trade remains highly unlikely at this early stage in the season. The Giants are off to a 1-0 start and as long as they're in the hunt for a playoff spot or more, New York is not going to shorten its edge rushers room.

That could very well change, though. The Giants are not expected to make much noise this season and if it's looking like their season will play out like that near the deadline, a trade is likely considering the Giants might end up letting him walk for nothing in 2027.

When it comes to cost, we just can't see Thibodeaux commanding more than a Day 3 (a fourth-rounder, at most) pick given his injury history, lackluster production and contract situation.

We would like to see the Bears aim higher, but Thibodeaux would still amount to better than nothing and we'd be on board with a trade, assuming the price is right.

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