Tracking the Chicago Bears in NFL free agency: Linebacker Jack Sanborn signs with Dallas Cowboys
The new NFL year officially began at 3 p.m. Wednesday, and the negotiating window for unrestricted free agents opened at 11 a.m. Monday. 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 Bears have 27 players with expiring contracts, most notably wide receiver Keenan Allen, offensive linemen Teven Jenkins, Matt Pryor and Coleman Shelton, long snapper Patrick Scales and running back/special teams ace Travis Homer. Their restricted free agents include defensive tackle Chris Williams and offensive lineman Doug Kramer.
The Tribune is tracking and analyzing the latest developments in free agency.
- Column: Veterans Joe Thuney and Grady Jarrett bring value to Bears that doesn’t end on the field
- New Bears guard Jonah Jackson ‘is made of the right stuff’
- Bears’ 5 biggest positions of need — and 101 players to watch in free agency and the draft
- Short-term fix for a long-term problem? Brad Biggs’ thoughts on Joe Thuney and Bears’ O-line overhaul.
Friday
Linebacker Jack Sanborn signed with the Dallas Cowboys.
What it means: The linebacker and Lake Zurich native spent his first three NFL seasons with the Bears. He originally signed with the team as an undrafted rookie out of Wisconsin in 2022.
Sanborn, 24, will follow former Bears coach Matt Eberflus and former Bears linebackers coach Dave Borgonzi to Dallas, where both are on the coaching staff under first-year head coach Brian Schottenheimer.
Sanborn appeared in 48 games, including 19 starts, over his three seasons in Chicago. He was a significant special teams contributor, playing 84.4% of the team’s special teams snaps in 2024. Sanborn totaled 164 combined tackles, 4½ sacks and one interception over three seasons.
The Bears elected not to tender Sanborn a contract as a restricted free agent, which allowed him to become an unrestricted free agent this week.
Thursday
The Bears reached agreement on a one-year contract with wide receiver Olamide Zaccheaus, a league source confirmed.
What this means: The Bears entered the day with six wide receivers under contract: DJ Moore, Rome Odunze, Tyler Scott and reserve/futures signees John Jackson, Samori Toure and Maurice Alexander. They added another piece to the puzzle with Zaccheaus, a 27-year-old veteran who amassed a career-high 45 catches last season for 506 yards and three touchdowns for the Washington Commanders.
The Bears will be Zaccheaus’ fourth team in as many seasons after stints with the Commanders (2024), Philadelphia Eagles (2023) and Atlanta Falcons (2019-22). The 5-foot-8, 193-pound Zaccheaus is on the small side and will have to carve out a role in Ben Johnson’s offense, perhaps as a weapon from the slot.
His most productive game last season was an eight-catch, 85-yard outing in a key Week 17 win over the Falcons. He contributed a 7-yard TD catch from Jayden Daniels in that game, his 13th career receiving touchdown.
Zaccheaus also has a reputation as a fearless and physical blocker, something that no doubt appeals to Johnson.
The Bears introduced Drew Dalman and Dayo Odeyingbo.
What it means: The Bears formally announced two more free-agent additions, introducing center Dalman and pass rusher Odeyingbo at a news conference at team headquarters in Lake Forest.
Dalman comes to Chicago after four years as the starting center for the Atlanta Falcons. He signed a three-year, $42 million contract with the Bears this week. Dalman should be a centerpiece for the revamped offensive line, playing beside recently acquired guards Joe Thuney and Jonah Jackson.
Odeyingbo signed a three-year, $48 million contract. The Bears have been searching for an effective pass rusher to play opposite Pro Bowl defensive end Montez Sweat. Odeyingbo had 16½ sacks over four seasons with the Indianapolis Colts, although he wasn’t a full-time starter until last season.
Wednesday
The Bears made several official transaction announcements as the new league year began.
What this means: The NFL’s new league year opened Wednesday and opened the door for the Bears to finalize several transactions that had been in the works over the last two weeks and widely reported.
The trades for guards Joe Thuney and Jonah Jackson became official. The Bears sent a 2026 fourth-round pick to the Kansas City Chiefs for Thuney and a sixth-round selection in next month’s draft to the Los Angeles Rams for Jackson.
The team also announced the signings of defensive tackle Grady Jarrett to a three-year deal and tight end Durham Smythe to a one-year contract.
Tuesday
The Bears are bringing back long snapper Scott Daly on a one-year contract, according to a league source.
What this means:Daly joined the Bears in August after incumbent long snapper Patrick Scales suffered a back injury during the preseason that required surgery. Daly, a Downers Grove South and Notre Dame alumnus, played well enough to keep the job.
In bringing back Daly, the Bears are pivoting from Scales, who had been with the organization since 2015 and played in 120 games.
Daly played in all 17 games last season — though he did leave the victory over the Jacksonville Jaguars in London with a first-quarter knee injury that thrust tight end Cole Kmet into emergency long-snapping duties. Kmet was honored for his relief performance as the NFC Special Teams Player of the Week.
Daly’s return is the latest to solidify the Bears special teams. The team previously worked out new deals for Josh Blackwell, Amen Ogbongbemiga and Tarvarius Moore.
Monday
The Bears have reached a three-year contract agreement with veteran defensive tackle Grady Jarrett.
What this means: Jarrett was a salary-cap casualty with the Atlanta Falcons, who released him Monday morning, but he quickly found a landing spot. The Bears aggressively pounced, guaranteeing the 31-year-old $28.5 million in a three-year, $43.5 million deal.
Jarrett has spent the last decade solidifying a reputation as a high-motor defensive disruptor with a special combination of quickness and power. He was named to the Pro Bowl in 2019 and 2020 and was a second-team All-Pro honoree in 2020. After the 2022 season, he was named to the NFL’s Top 100 Players list, as voted on by players around the league.
Jarrett missed nine games in 2023 with a torn ACL but returned to start all 17 games last season and has proved durable throughout his career, playing in at least 14 games in nine of his 10 seasons. He projects to be a starter up front on a remade line that also added pass rusher Dayo Odeyingbo on Monday. The Bears have shown full-throttle aggressiveness in investing in both lines over the past week.
The Bears also signed safety Tarvarius Moore, 28, to a one-year extension. Moore played in 11 games for the Bears last season, mostly on special teams, and had seven special teams tackles.
The Bears are signing defensive end Dayo Odeyingbo to a three-year, $48 million deal, according to a league source.
What this means: After spending significant resources over the past week to upgrade the offensive line, the Bears turned their attention to the defensive front with a top-shelf signing from the edge rusher aisle. Odeyingbo, drafted in the second round out of Vanderbilt in 2021, is 25 and gradually ascended over his first four seasons with the Indianapolis Colts.
He should bring both juice and versatility to Dennis Allen’s defense as a high-energy pass rusher and reliable run defender. Odeyingbo has only 16½ career sacks and recorded just three last season, his first as a full-time starter. But he totaled 17 quarterback hits in 2024 and has the potential to emerge as a complementary threat opposite Montez Sweat.
Odeyingbo’s size (6-foot-6, 286 pounds) makes him a presence up front. With the ability to kick inside as a rusher, he can become a chess piece for Allen in must-pass situations for the opponent. The Bears are investing in Odeyingbo with a belief he can carve out a heightened role in the defense quickly. It’s realistic to project he can contribute at least six to eight sacks next season while becoming a regular disruptor. Becoming more consistent in his first season in Chicago will be a big deal. Read more here.
Former Bears quarterback Justin Fields will get a fresh start with the New York Jets.
What this means: Fields will receive $30 million in guaranteed money in the two-year, $40 million contract he agreed on to become the Jets’ new starter — and the successor to Aaron Rodgers. Fields’ arrival in New York comes after an up-and-down season in Pittsburgh that saw him start the Steelers’ first six games with a 4-2 record before being pushed into a backup role behind Russell Wilson.
Fields set career highs in completion percentage (.658) and passer rating (93.3) in Pittsburgh and rushed for 289 yards and five touchdowns during those six starts. He also passed for five scores and threw only one interception but averaged only 184.3 passing yards per start and was sacked 16 times. He will get a new opportunity under first-year Jets coach Aaron Glenn and offensive coordinator Tanner Engstrand.
After three flash-filled but inconsistent seasons with the Bears, Fields was traded to the Steelers last spring. The Bears got back a 2025 sixth-round draft pick, which they traded last week to the Los Angeles Rams for veteran guard Jonah Jackson.
The Bears are signing center Drew Dalman to a three-year, $42 million deal, a league source confirmed.
What this means: The Bears didn’t wait long to make a big splash in the free-agency waters, zeroing in on the top available center and reaching a deal in the first half-hour of the NFL’s negotiating window.
Dalman, 26, just reached the end of his rookie contract with the Atlanta Falcons and is heralded as a smart, steady lineman who can be an asset as a run blocker. He started 40 games over the last three seasons. He missed eight in the middle of last season with an ankle injury that sent him to injured reserve, but he returned in December and finished the season strong.
Dalman’s contract includes $28 million in guaranteed money and continues the aggressive efforts of general manager Ryan Poles and coach Ben Johnson to rebuild the offensive line in front of second-year quarterback Caleb Williams. In the last week, the Bears have added three starters to the interior with the Dalman deal coming on the heels of trades for guards Joe Thuney and Jonah Jackson. Read more here.
The Los Angeles Chargers reached an agreement on a one-year contract extension with Khalil Mack.
What this means: Dreams of a Mack reunion with the Bears slipped out the window Monday morning when the 34-year-old pass rusher agreed to a fully guaranteed, one-year, $18 million extension to stay with the Chargers, according to multiple national reports.
Mack, who has 107½ career sacks and played four seasons in Chicago from 2018-2021, has spent the last three years in Los Angeles and continues to be a respected pass-rushing threat. In 2023 he totaled a career-high 17 sacks in Brandon Staley’s defense. Last season, after Jim Harbaugh replaced Staley as Chargers head coach, Mack’s sack total dipped to six under defensive coordinator Jesse Minter.
The Bears are seeking to add teeth to their pass rush via free agency and the draft. Potential free agents to keep on the radar this week include Josh Sweat, Dayo Odeyingbo, Malcolm Koonce, Azeez Ojulari and Joseph Ossai.
March 6
The Bears reached agreements on two-year contracts with special teams standouts Josh Blackwell and Amen Ogbongbemiga, according to league sources.
What this means: Special teams coordinator Richard Hightower, a holdover from Matt Eberflus’ coaching staff, will retain two of his most trusted and valued contributors. The Bears announced both extensions later Thursday.
Ogbongbemiga joined the Bears on a one-year free-agent deal last spring and logged 366 snaps on special teams, second on the team behind fellow linebacker Jack Sanborn.
Blackwell, whom the Bears claimed off waivers at the end of the 2022 preseason when he was an undrafted rookie, has been a high-level special teams contributor for the last three seasons. He made one start at cornerback last season and was a reliable reserve in the secondary when called upon. He had his first career interception off Jacksonville Jaguars quarterback Trevor Lawrence during the Bears’ Week 6 blowout victory in London.
The Bears are signing veteran tight end Durham Smythe to a one-year deal, a league source told the Tribune.
What this means: Released by the Miami Dolphins last month, Smythe has found a new home at Halas Hall in a mini-reunion with Ben Johnson. The two overlapped in Miami for one season in 2018 when Johnson was the Dolphins wide receivers coach and Smythe was a rookie. So as with guard Jonah Jackson, who spent his first four seasons in Detroit with Johnson on the coaching staff, the Bears have checked the familiarity box again.
They needed to add talent and depth at tight end behind Cole Kmet, and Smythe is more of a traditional in-line tight end whose greatest value is as a blocker in the running game. (He also overlapped with Kmet at Notre Dame for one season in 2017.)
Smythe enjoyed a career season in 2023 in receiving productivity, recording 35 catches for 366 yards. Over seven seasons, he has 132 receptions for 1,228 yards with three touchdowns.
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