INDIANAPOLIS — The Bears spent years yearning for a season like the one they just had. Going 11-6 and winning a playoff game was indisputable progress worth celebrating.
But no serious NFL organization is satisfied with merely that. The Bears dug themselves out of futility. Great. But there’s so much more to chase.
“We don’t confuse the postseason victory or exceeding expectations from outside of the building [with it being] OK to be complacent,” coach Ben Johnson said Tuesday at the NFL Scouting Combine. “It’s not. We didn’t do enough. We’ve got to do more.”
If they want to do better, they’ll have to be better. The same roster, even with projected improvement from quarterback Caleb Williams, theoretically would deliver the same outcome next season.
That means Johnson and general manager Ryan Poles must detach themselves from players they love — the ones who just helped the Bears have their best season since 2018 — and be ruthless in evaluating potential upgrades.
They face decisions on their own pending free agents, such as safeties Kevin Byard and Jaquan Brisker, as well as outside free agents and their upcoming No. 25 overall draft pick. They also have several key players under contract for next season who are nonetheless up for discussion because of affordable escapes in their contracts. That group includes linebacker Tremaine Edmunds, tight end Cole Kmet and running back D’Andre Swift. The Bears also could save salary-cap space by trading wide receiver DJ Moore.
Poles dodged a question Tuesday about Edmunds’ future, left options open for Moore and said he felt “pretty good” about retaining Kmet and Swift.
Edmunds is coming off a good season with 112 tackles, four interceptions and a fumble recovery, but the Bears need to clear cap space to address their more pressing needs, such as left tackle and their pass rush. They can pay Edmunds $17.4 million next season or cut him for $2.4 million. It’s sensible to reallocate that money.
Going into the new league year on March 11, the Bears are a negligible $4.1 million over the cap and can clear more than that by restructuring some contracts. But they’ll have to dig deeper to create enough space to acquire a high-end pass rusher such as Raiders defensive end Maxx Crosby or Bengals defensive end Trey Hendrickson.
As much as technology has sped up communication, there’s still no substitute for in-person interaction. When the combine pulls the NFL’s general managers and agents into close proximity for a week in Indianapolis, things start moving.
Raiders general manager John Spytek, for example, was careful in his public comments Tuesday about planning to keep Crosby, but that conversation could be a lot different at a steakhouse. That’s why Poles stopped short of saying concretely that the Bears will hang on to Kmet and Swift.
“I feel pretty good about [them] being here, but . . . any new, unique opportunities that might pop up are usually going to pop up here,” Poles said when asked specifically about those two. “We’ll get back and sort it all out and make decisions, but I feel pretty good about those guys.”
Given that the Bears just had a top-10 offense for the first time since 2013 and that Kmet ($11.6 million) and Swift ($8.8 million) have reasonable cap numbers for their positions, they’re good fits. Swift just had a career year with 1,087 yards and nine touchdowns and recently told the Sun-Times he hopes that’s enough to convince the Bears he should stay.
Moore is the trickiest puzzle. He was ultra-reliable his first two years in Chicago, finishing with 2,330 yards and 14 touchdown catches despite the offense being a mess and his quarterbacks struggling. Last season, he slipped to career lows with 50 catches for 682 yards.
Poles and Johnson were adamant that Moore has been worth more than those statistics show.
“He was a guy we could count on,” Johnson said. “The versatility is something that screams at you. The intelligence screams at you and . . . just the toughness, the durability. A player like that is really, really valuable.”
That’s not the entirety of the debate. Having Moore is a positive for the Bears, but is he a legitimate No. 1 wide receiver for a team with championship aspirations? Will he play up to his $28.5 million cap hit, which is seventh among receivers?
That’s difficult to answer. It also would be difficult to answer for another team considering making an offer. And then the Bears would face the challenge of replacing Moore within their budget. They’d be better off betting on him bouncing back at just 28.
“We want him here,” Poles said. “We think highly of him. He’s a great teammate. He’s been productive consistently over the last couple years.
“I have nothing but great things to say about him, but this is the time that you have to look at all the different scenarios and see what can allow us to put the best team out there. He’s a guy we want here, but we have to look at all different scenarios.”
It’s painful, but it’s the right way to think. If the Bears aren’t content with what they did last season, then they can’t be content with the current roster. Some moves are more likely than others, but Poles should be willing to listen on almost anyone.
Edmunds has spent three years with the Bears.
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The NFL Scouting Combine is here, so let’s talk about how the Bears’ 2026 roster might shake out.
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About $500 million would go toward infrastructure upgrades. The remaining $130 million would replace stadium seats, upgrade concessions, restrooms, locker rooms, video and sound systems, and overhaul skyboxes and club-level lounges.
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