No Offseason: That's Offensive

If Ben Johnson’s mantra is to be believed, the 2026 Bears offense should be better after being good in 2025, with best being reserved for 2027 but that order is always up for debate. The Bears were 6^th in the NFL in total yards, 10^th in pass yards, 3^rd in rush yards and 9^th in points. All in the top third of the league despite a slow start with a steady climb in efficiency, finishing tied for 7^th in EPA per play and 9^th in success rate. They were 9^th in EPA per pass and 4^th in EPA per run.

Solid across the board yet with room to grow. The list of needs on the offensive side of the ball is short, a nice departure from last year. The team is projected to return its top ten players by snap count and 14 of their top 15 with only Olamide Zaccheus leaving. There might be some changes to that number depending on how they choose to clear money but the continuity figures to be very strong.

The Methodology:

Positional fits are determined by the PFF Top 250 Free Agents and their ranking system. I know, PFF is imperfect but it’s the best we have. Players listed as NA did not play enough snaps to meet the rating threshold.

The Needs:

Offensive Tackle

Ozzy Trapilo's injury looks to be one of the most consequential plays of the 2025 season, they had sorted out left tackle for the foreseeable future and now it's an even bet as to whether Trapilo ever returns to being a capable NFL starter. Big man + structural leg injuries = no good. Benching Theo Benedet in a playoff game for a guard who hadn't played snaps all year seemed to indicate just how the staff feels about Benedet and Kiran Amedgadjie should be ready to put that Yale education to good use in something other than football.

In-House Options + PFF Position Rank /89

Darnell Wright – 12

Ozzy Trapilo – 36**

Theo Benedet – 72

Kiran Amegajdie - NA

Available + PFF Position Rank /89

Trent Brown – 40

Justin Skule – 48

Braden Smith – 50

Rasheed Walker – 52

Jermaine Eluemunor – 54

Elijah Wilkinson – 57

Jack Conklin – 72

Rob Havenstein – 74

Jonah Williams – 75

Braxton Jones – NA

Kendall Lamm – NA

It's very likely that plan B here is to bring back Braxton Jones on a mutually beneficial pillow contract with the hope that Jones is back to being healthy with experience in the system. Otherwise, the options are bleak. Someone like Justin Skule who has experience as a swing tackle with starting experience in Minnesota could make some sense, but you’ll know how they feel about Trapilo’s path based on how much money they spend here. The draft may be more likely but that puts you back at square one where you were with Trapilo last year. This also might be a spot to wait for a cap casualty from somewhere else, Taylor Decker from Detroit comes to mind.

Wide Receiver

Ryan Poles talked about “exploring the scenarios” when it comes to DJ Moore. He sounded an awful lot like someone who knew that DJ Moore had played his last snap for the Bears. The direction of this position is obviously massively impacted by what happens with Moore but regardless, they’ll lose competent production from Zaccheus that needs to be replaced. But this is a team that led the NFL in drops last season. Sumer Sports has a stat of catch percentage meaning what percentage of targets turned into catches. The highest ranked wide receiver from the Bears last year was Zaccheus at number 59 among wide receivers who ran at least 250 routes. Moore was 67^th and Rome Odunze was 84^th. Luther Burden didn’t meet the catch threshold (244 routes run) but he would have been 7^th. That last piece is worth remembering before putting all the blame on Caleb Williams. The numbers match the eye test that Burden, despite some drops of his own, was the Bears best wide receiver last year. This mission now becomes to add someone who can reliably catch the ball for Caleb Williams.

In-House + PFF Position Rank  /81

Luther Burden – 19

Rome Odunze – 37

DJ Moore – 58

Jahdae Walker – NA

Available Free Agents + PFF Position Rank /81

George Pickens – 10*

Alec Pierce – 18

Keenan Allen – 23*

Romeo Doubs – 35*

Wan’Dale Robinson – 40*

Mike Evans – 42

Marquise Brown – 42*

Deebo Samuel – 44*

Jauan Jennings – 48*

Jalen Nailor – 54

Rashid Shaheed – 55*

Christian Kirk – 75

Calvin Austin – 76

DeAndre Hopkins – NA

Tyquan Thornton – NA

* = Would have led the Bears in catch% this year

Williams relied on Keenan Allen a lot in the year he was here, so it is possible they pursue someone to fill that role. Mike Evans has indicated he may move on from Tampa Bay and could be a huge add if he has more gas in the tank. The name that makes the most sense here is Deebo Samuel, particularly if they trade Moore. Samuel would be able to run some of the backfield things that Moore did while also boasting the 9^th best catch percentage in the league last year. Wan’Dale Robinson was 4^th in the NFL in drop rate with only 3.2%. Although following a 1,000 yard season, he may have priced himself out of the Bears range.

Odds and Ends

There is some smoke about teams being interested in Tyson Bagent. If you needed an indication how bleak the QB market is between free agency and the draft, look no further than that sentence. I’ll believe it when I see but if they do end up moving him, they’ll either jump on the backup carousel with a guy like Carson Wentz or bring back Case Keenum.

Durham Smythe is a free agent who may be replaced through the draft but as long as he wants to come back, he played the H-back role very well last year and would seem to be a logical re-sign candidate.

Depending on the staff’s opinion of Luke Newman, they may be interested in veteran depth on the interior, particularly center but given that Drew Dalman played every snap last year, it seems like a low priority. Another potential Detroit cap casualty, Graham Glasgow would make sense.

Cutting D’Andre Swift or Cole Kmet is a lateral move that would create an unnecessary hole. The only way I see a Swift cut happening is if they love Breece Hall and have a deal done with him.