How Darnell Wright's Contract Extension Impacts the Bears' Salary Cap Situation

When Darnell Wright secured his second-team All-Pro honors after the 2025 season, the cost to keep him went way up for the Chicago Bears, and on Tuesday afternoon we saw just how far up it went. According to multiple NFL insiders, the Bears signed Wright to a record-setting contract extension worth $116 million over four years, with $91 million guaranteed. According to ESPN's Jeremy Fowler, this is both the largest deal ever for a right tackle and the most guaranteed money for any offensive lineman in NFL history.

Between Wright, Jonah Jackson, and Joe Thuney, the Bears have now invested over $81 million per year into their offensive line, a marked difference from the early years of Ryan Poles' tenure in Chicago. This massive contract is a true win-win scenario for both parties. Wright locks in generational wealth for himself, and the Bears lock in one of the best young tackles in the NFL.

Can the Bears still add playmakers after committing this much money to Darnell Wright?

As good of a deal as this extension is, there's no denying that it represents a large portion of the Bears' salary cap. Fans may think that there's now no chance for a Maxx Crosby trade to Chicago at the trade deadline this year, but that's not entirely off the board. This extension won't count against the 2026 salary cap, which means Wright is still playing on his rookie deal for now.

But what about 2027? While the specifics of Wright's contract haven't been made public yet, we already know that there's some hefty contracts currently on Chicago's books that likely won't be there next year. Dayo Odeyingbo and Grady Jarrett, two of the Bears' biggest free agent acquisitions from last year, will likely be released after 2026, and that would free up nearly $30 million of cap space right there.

There's also Montez Sweat and Jaylon Johnson, who could sign extension themselves in order to lower their cap hit, or have their current contracts reworked. So, even though Wright will soon become a much larger percentage of the Bears' salary cap, he's still playing on a cheap deal, which means Ryan Poles could still make a blockbuster trade if he feels like the time is right in November.

The Bears are paying the price of drafting well

This contract represents what is likely to become an expensive era for the Chicago Bears. When an NFL team drafts well, it becomes increasingly pricey to keep their core together. The Bears don't even have to leave the division to look for an example. In recent years, the Detroit Lions have drafted superstar after superstar, and they're now paying the cost, most recently with linebacker Jack Campbell's new contract.

Remarkably, Wright is the first first-round pick by the Bears to sign an extension with the team since Kyle Fuller, who was drafted nine years before Wright. And if all goes according to plan in 2026, Wright's contract will pale in comparison to the next extensions the Bears pay out.

Ryan Poles is awaiting a green light to sign Caleb Williams to a massive extension, one that will likely beat Dak Prescott's average annual value of $60 million per year. But Williams isn't the only Bear who will become eligible to sign a new deal after this season. The Bears also selected Rome Odunze in the same class as Williams, and the cost to keep good receivers around has skyrocketed.

Between Odunze and Williams, the Bears could very well be on the hook for something in the neighborhood of $100 million per year very soon. Of course, that's a very good problem to have, and Bears fans will have to trust that Ryan Poles will figure out how to juggle all of these contracts while still fielding a complete roster.

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