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Bear Digest

How Free Agency Altered Essential Bears Depth Heading into the Draft

GM Ryan Poles will greatly need to consider depth needs in this draft after the way free agency took a toll on it with his roster.
Gene Chamberlain|
If something happened to D'Andre Swift, where is the Bears' speed in the backfield? It's a question the draft could answer.
If something happened to D'Andre Swift, where is the Bears' speed in the backfield? It's a question the draft could answer. | David Banks-Imagn Images

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Chicago Bears

Green Bay's season took a drastic turn downward last season after the December season-ending knee injury to Micah Parsons.

The Packers never won another game and Ben Johnson's Bears rushed to the top of the division. Parsons hurt them in two ways because their rush was worse and suddenly their cornerback play and linebacker pass coverage were exposed more.

The Bears also benefited when Detroit had safety Brian Branch suffer a torn Achilles in Week 14 and cornerback Terrion Arnold missed half the season. They also lost defensive tackle Alim McNeil for seven games as he wound up with a season-ending ACL injury.

Then there was Minnesota's continuing injury issues with J.J. McCarthy, five games missed by running back starter Aaron Jones and the loss of standout edge rusher Jonathan Greenard for the same number of games.

The NFL is always a war of attrition and teams  who handle the inevitable lost players to injuries have a leg up. The Bears had their own injury issues in the secondary last year with Kyler Gordon and Jaylon Johnson missing massive chunks of the season and their entire linebacker group going out at key points. How defensive coordinator Dennis Allen dealt with this was one of the themes to their season, and the Bears benefited from fewer offensive injuries most of the year until it caught up to them with Rome Odunze's foot fracture and Ozzy Trapilo's season-ending knee surgery in the playoffs

Free agency greatly  impacts a team's depth and ability to handle injuries. Veteran reserve players leave because they're often on one-year contracts, and then there are starters moving when they're out of contract. The Bears' depth took a hit in free agency or was altered.

As they approach the draft, here are the positions they most need to address depth issues later in the draft or even earlier.

1. Safety

When you're missing a starter, you don't have much depth. The Bears need to draft two safeties because they signed Coby Bryant and retained Elijah Hicks, but free agent acquisition Cam Lewis isn't necessarily a safety as much as a backup nickel and a dime cornerback. He can play safety if needed but 5-foot-9 safeties are not exactly guys in great demand as key performers. The Bears need to find that starter early in the draft, then either use a late pick for another one or else an undrafted free agent—possibly even another veteran free agent if they can find the cash.

2. Center

There isn't a backup yet behind a starter who has never played a down for them, unless you count guard Luke Newman. He's never played a down of the position in the NFL and almost all of his practice time has been at guard. One possible reason for the great Bears interest in Alabama's pro day Wednesday with Ryan Poles watching was center Parker Brailsford but he might not even be a draftable player. Pro Football Focus doesn't even have him on its big board of 350 players, although Mel Kiper grades him the eighth-best center prospect. NFL Mock Draft Data Base's big board as him a fourth- or fifth-round possibility.

3. Wide receiver

Losing DJ Moore and Olamide Zaccheaus but replacing them only with Kalif Raymond leaves them with only six receivers on the roster. That would be all right for the regular season, but they're most likely not counting on JP Richardson and Maurice Alexander as potential key offensive pieces. They need at least another receiver in this draft. They are an injury to Luther Burden or Rome Odunze away from disaster at the moment.

4. Linebacker

Even after bringing back Jack Sanborn—who figures as the fourth or fifth linebacker at best once everyone is healthy—they can't be certain to start camp with depth because T.J. Edwards is coming off a January broken leg and Noah Sewell had a late-season torn Achilles.

5. Running back

An injury to D'Andre Swift leaves the Bears with no speed option of any sort in the backfield. They had this issue last year too, but could always move DJ Moore back there and he's gone now. Kyle Monangai is a 4.6-second guy in the 40. Roschon Johnson has always been injured and has been a power back. Brittain Brown was a waiver wire pickup who will be challenged to make the roster.  

6. Cornerback

A year ago, they had veteran NFL types like Nahshon Wright and Nick McCloud to fall back on when Jaylon Johnson and Gordon went out. Lewis gives them a solid backup slot behind Gordon but on the outside the backups are Jaylon Jones, Terell Smith, and Zah Frazier. Smith is coming of a torn ACL, Jones was a backup who left the team in free agency and then was picked up after Arizona didn't want him, and Frazier hasn't been in an NFL training camp or regular season. Another draft pick to add to the mix would be valued.

7. Edge rusher

It's hard to believe but the Bears can't count on depth at this position even though there are sufficient numbers. After starters Montez Sweat and Austin Booker, there is Dayo Odeyingbo coming off a midseason torn Achilles, Shemar Turner coming off a midseason torn ACL, Daniel Hardy, Jeremiah Martin, Jamree Kromah, and Jonathan Garvin. A drafted edge rusher has the chance to come in and immediately be the first player off the bench to spell Sweat and Booker at a position where a rotation is necessary.

8. Defensive tackle

The need here is more for quality than depth. But they could use either. They signed three backup types in free agency, but none appear good enough to be starters if something happened to Grady Jarrett or Gervon Dexter.

9. Tight end

You need three and their choice at No. 3 right now is injury-prone Stephen Carlson.

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Gene Chamberlain
GENE CHAMBERLAIN

Gene Chamberlain has covered the Chicago Bears full time as a beat writer since 1994 and prior to this on a part-time basis for 10 years. He covered the Bears as a beat writer for Suburban Chicago Newspapers, the Daily Southtown, Copley News Service and has been a contributor for the Daily Herald, the Associated Press, Bear Report, CBS Sports.com and The Sporting News. He also has worked a prep sports writer for Tribune Newspapers and Sun-Times newspapers.

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