The new NFL year officially began March 12, and the negotiating window for unrestricted free agents opened March 10. For the Chicago Bears, it’s a critical period for general manager Ryan Poles and coach Ben Johnson to upgrade the roster.
The Bears struck twice before free agency with a pair of trades for offensive linemen Joe Thuney and Jonah Jackson from the Kansas City Chiefs and Los Angeles Rams, respectively, addressing one of their biggest positions of need.
The Tribune is tracking and analyzing the latest developments in free agency.
- Column: ‘Unlimited money’? No, but Bears have division rivals’ attention with offseason roster rebuild.
- Is ‘winning the offseason’ a real thing? And what must the Bears do for the NFL draft to be a success?
- New Bears WR Olamide Zaccheaus sees parallels with last year’s Washington Commanders
- Column: Veterans Joe Thuney and Grady Jarrett bring value to Bears that doesn’t end on the field
- Drew Dalman is at the center of a revamped Bears offensive line. Now they need to make it work.
- New Bears guard Jonah Jackson ‘is made of the right stuff’
Monday
The Bears re-signed five players, including defensive tackle Chris Williams.
What it means: The Bears announced the signings on the same day they welcomed players back to Halas Hall for the offseason practice period. Williams, who appeared in all 17 games last season, was a restricted free agent and could negotiate with other teams, but the Bears had the right to match any outside offers.
The Bears also re-signed four exclusive-rights free agents: defensive tackle Jonathan Ford, defensive end Daniel Hardy, interior offensive lineman Bill Murray and defensive back Ameer Speed.
The Bears traded for Williams in August when it became apparent that defensive tackle Zacch Pickens would miss the beginning of the season with an injury. The Bears traded a 2025 sixth-round draft pick to the Cleveland Browns in exchange for Williams and a 2025 seventh-round pick.
Williams wound up playing 34.4% of the team’s defensive snaps. He totaled three sacks, three tackles for a loss and 23 tackles.
Hardy also appeared in all 17 games, primarily on special teams. He led all Bears players with 370 special teams snaps (84.7%) and had 12 tackles and one forced fumble.
The Bears signed Ford off the Green Bay Packers practice squad in December and he played in four games. Murray appeared in three games last season and Speed in two.
The moves followed a trio of signings late last week of veteran players to one-year contracts: backup quarterback Case Keenum, wide receiver Miles Boykin and cornerback Shaun Wade.
Boykin, a Tinley Park native who played at Providence and Notre Dame, spent most of last season on the Seattle Seahawks practice squad. He has appeared in 73 NFL games with the Baltimore Ravens and ...
