Proposed Bears-Chiefs Trade for Former First-Round EDGE Wouldn't Fix Chicago's Issue

While the Chicago Bears should be looking to add to their edge rushers room, this proposed deal wouldn't be enough to move the needle.

Kansas City Chiefs head coach Andy Reid and Chicago Bears head coach Ben Johnson. | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

If there's one position we could see the Chicago Bears adding to ahead of the 2026 season, it's edge rusher.

The position was widely viewed as one of the team's biggest needs going into the offseason thanks to the uncertainty with the trio of Austin Booker, Dayo Odeyingbo and Shemar Turner across from Montez Sweat.

However, the Bears did not address the position at all during the offseason and that has left Bears fans and analysts alike uneasy about the state of the edge rushers room following a season in which Chicago ranked near the bottom of the NFL in many pass-rushing categories, including sacks and pass-rush win rate.

Analyst proposes Bears-Chiefs trade

Kansas City Chiefs defensive end Felix Anudike-Uzomah. | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

Knowing the uncertainty at edge rusher for the Bears, Bleacher Report's Moe Moton has suggested a trade that would send defensive end Felix Anudike-Uzomah to Chicago for a late selection in the 2027 NFL Draft.

While Moton points out that Anudike-Uzomah missed all of last season due to an injury, he also notes how the former first-round pick flashed some promise in 2024.

"Yet Anudike-Uzomah showed brief promise during the 2024 campaign, playing 31 percent of the defensive snaps. Perhaps a restart with a new team that needs a pass-rusher would give him more opportunities to showcase his potential," Moton wrote.

The promise Moton points out is Anudike-Uzomah's 2.5 sacks on 31% of snaps in 2024. The year prior, he tallied 0.5 sacks while playing 21% of snaps.

Should the Bears make this trade?

Chicago Bears general manager Ryan Poles. | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

With the Bears needing more options at edge rusher, there aren't many trades we would say no to at this point, especially ones involving a late-round pick.

That said, Anundike-Uzomah is unlikely to move the needle to the extent the Bears need. In reality, he would be just as big of a question mark as the Bears' current trio opposite Sweat.

Anundike-Uzomah has just three sacks combined during his career and is anything but a sure thing to improve upon what he did in 2024, especially after not playing at all last season.

The only thing we would say is that Anundike-Uzomah could be a depth upgrade over Turner, but we're basing that on a five-game sample size for the second-round pick, who also played the majority of his snaps on the inside.

We certainly wouldn't hate a trade for the Chiefs edge rusher, but it's not like we would declare Chicago's issues fixed if the Bears acquired him.