Bear Digest

Potential Nahshon Wright Types Bears Could Scavenge From Rivals

The Bears are in need of defensive help and there's nothing more fun than signing a division rival's free agent and getting higher productivity from him.
Gene Chamberlain|
Lions linebacker Malcolm Rodriguez tackles Bears tight end Cole Kmet. After a 2024 ACL tear, Rodriguez is a free agent at a position where the Bears could need help.
Lions linebacker Malcolm Rodriguez tackles Bears tight end Cole Kmet. After a 2024 ACL tear, Rodriguez is a free agent at a position where the Bears could need help. | Junfu Han / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

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Chicago Bears

In 2025, the Bears signed a practice squad player the Minnesota Vikings didn't want and discarded in April, and he became a Pro Bowl cornerback.

Not only did Nahshon Wright prove capable of supplying depth the Bears needed after Jaylon Johnson's groin injury, he lead the NFL in total takeaways and now goes back into free agency looking to make a fortune compared to last year's measly $1.1 million cap number.

To top it off, he was a player the Vikings actually made a trade to get but then cut  in the offseason.

There is nothing quite so galling to a fan base as seeing a discard go on to produce against their old team, but Wright did it rather quickly as he had a pick-6 in his first Bears game against the Vikings. This was long before he became the player who put a stop to the Eagles' rugby offensive tackles: Peanut punch trumps tush push.

It's not like the Bears have been spared this ignominy over the years. They had it the last few years when Al-Quadin Muhammad was piling up sacks for Detroit after all he could do in Chicago was make one sack in 16 games. He had 11 sacks last season and has 14 in two years for the Lions after he had 12 for his first six NFL seasons. Some guys develop later, apparently.

For years, the Bears had to face Packers safety Adrian Amos after letting him  leave in free agency and paying Pro Bowl safety Eddie Jackson. Amos' career flourished in Green Bay while Jackson leveled off and then dropped in productivity before being cut before the 2024 season after he made $46.4 million of a $56.4 million deal.

There could be opportunities for the Bears to hurt the Packers, Vikings and Lions again with signings like they made with Wright. Here are NFC North free agents who could the Bears could target.

In many cases, their current team's fans would say good riddance, but remember: Vikings fans weren't opining for Wright last year after cutting him.

Detroit Lions

The Lions have several defensive players who could be a fit in helping the Bears. One would be Muhammad, but it would be difficult to imagine Ryan Poles signing him to return to Chicago as a free agent after he bombed here with one sack. The projected Spotrac.com contract for Muhammad is $7.9 million in 2026 and at that price it would be easy for Poles to say "fool me once shame on you, fool me twice shame on me" for someone who had one great NFL season and one so-so season.

DT DJ Reader: He still plays at a high level, is 31 and is PFF's 20th ranked free agent for any position. He's also projected to be a bargain, at $4.5 million by PFF and $3.9 million by Spotrac.

LB Alex Anzalone. He played in Dennis Allen's defensive scheme earlier in New Orleans and is 31. PFF has him at 53rd best free agent and Spotrac projects him at $7.26 million. If the Bears cut Tremaine Edmunds for cap purposes, Anzalone could possibly fit in but they could probably do better from a cost standpoint with a Day 2 draft pick.

LB Malcolm Rodriguez: He'd be a guy to take a flyer on. Rodriguez was seventh-best linebacker in the NFL in pass coverage and 20th vs. the run in 2024 before tearing an ACL late in the year against the Bears and it cost him most of last year. Another year removed and perhaps he returns healthy. He's not even projected as a top 250 free agent by PFF. Already he's well acquainted with the Bears head coach.

DT Ray Lopez: He's the 215th- rated free agent per PFF and projected by Spotrac.com to get a better deal ($6.3 million) than teammate Reader, at $6.3 million. He's been very productive in terms of tackles considering he is a nose tackle at 312 pounds, with 167 career tackles for Houston, Arizona and the Lions.

DT Levi Onwuzurike: He's ideal size at  304 for an Allen defensive tackle, and is projected to cost $4.8 million in 2026 by Spotrac. He was 26th of 132 defensive tackles in 2024 after a back injury early in his career, but then missed all of last year with a training camp ACL tear. Rated the 169th best free agent defensive tackle by PFF.

WR Kalif Raymond: The Bears could lose receiver/return man Devin Duvernay in free agency, although Spotrac.com says he would cost less than the $3.5 million Spotrac projects for Raymond. In the 31-year-old Raymond, they'd have a potential offensive contributor because he's familiar with what Ben Johnson wants and made 171 catches in five seasons. Duvernay made two catches last year. The Bears could have an opening for a backup slot behind Luther Burden, and Raymond averaged 12.8 yards a catch in his Lions career, which is 4.8 yards more per catch than Olamide Zaccheaus averaged last year as backup Bears slot. He's a two-time Pro Bowl return man, like Duvernay.

Green Bay Packers

There are only a few Packers in free agency at positions of interest to the Bears, and one is Romeo Doubs. They don't need someone at a projected $12.8 million to botch onside kicks because they already have Daniel Hardy, who does that for cheaper. Nor do they want to pay a projected $21 million for mediocre left tackle Rasheed Walker, who graded out worse than Braxton Jones over the course of their careers. Here's who could be of assistance, especially if the price is low.

Edge Kingsley Enagbare: At 6-4, 258, Allen would ask him to add a little weight but not much. He has 12 sacks in four years and three forced fumbles with a $5.9 million Spotrac.com projection. He actually outperformed Rashan Gary during part of last season, although this wasn't saying much .

LB Quay Walker: Largely a disappointment to Packers fans, he's 140th on PFF's free agent list despite making a good total of 469 tackles in four years. A good bet to produce more elsewhere but at a projected $8.3 million the Bears wouldn't need to think hard to take a  pass.

Edge Brenton Cox: A restricted free agent but he was undrafted. So it seems unlikely he'd be tendered after a one-sack season. He did make four sacks in seven 2024 games, though, and had a high pass rush win rate for what that's worth.

Minnesota Vikings

Minnesota plays such a unique defensive scheme that its players often are of no help to the Bears in their current scheme. Still, there are a few.

T Justin Skule: Graded out higher last year than Theo Benedet did for the Bears and just below what Ozzy Trapilo rated. He has a record for consistency throughout his career, which dates to 2019. As a rookie he was the 12th best run-blocking tackle in the league per PFF. The good thing about Skule is he is projected at a backup rate of $2.76 million. He could easily be someone to enter into the tackle competition while Trapilo heals from knee surgery.

WR Jalen Nailor: With the competition for footballs between Justin Jefferson, Jordan Addison and T.J. Hockenson, Nailor gets left out and has highs of only 28 and 29 catches the last two years. But what he did well was score TDs. Of his 57 catches, 10 were TDs. Projected at $4.7 million for 2026 by Spotrac.

LB Eric Wilson: Now 31, Wilson is projected  at $4.3 million for 2026 by Spotrac. He remains a good run defender but struggles covering the pass.

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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.