The 2026 NFL offseason is shaping up to be a busy one, and the Chicago Bears are already at the front and center of it. The team already made arguably the biggest trade thus far when they sent DJ Moore to the Buffalo Bills in exchange for a second-round draft pick.
Chicago's roster tweaking won't end there. Last offseason, they were one of the busiest teams in free agency, and they also continued to revamp the offense through the draft. Their aggressive offseason approach resulted in the team improving from a 5-12 record to a division title. Fans should expect the Bears to get busy in free agency once again. So, which free agents should the team pursue?
Chicago now needs a DJ Moore replacement
The Bears famously traded the first overall pick in 2023 for two first-round picks, two second-round picks, and Moore. That trade worked out great for Chicago. The pick they traded away turned into Bryce Young, who has spent much of his career as a draft bust. The Bears, meanwhile, turned their newfound draft capital into Luther Burden, Darnell Wright, Tyrique Stevenson, Tory Taylor, and Caleb Williams, the latter of whom was selected first overall in 2024.
Williams was one of the most highly touted draft prospects ever, and he is already starting to live up to the promise. The Bears have done a great job of surrounding him with weapons. Burden, Rome Odunze, and Colston Loveland are a few of the pass catchers they drafted early to make sure Williams has ample help. Moore has been WR1 during his entire tenure in Chicago, though.
That made trading him away come as a surprise to many. Moore's numbers have regressed in each of his seasons with the Bears, but he seemingly still has plenty left to offer. However, receiving a second-round draft pick in return was quite impressive. The Bears will still likely want to find a replacement in free agency, as the team should still be ensuring their franchise quarterback has plenty of help.
Romeo Doubs is one of the best free agents on the open market this offseason. The expectation is that the recent draftees in Chicago will continue improving, but Doubs would be a great complementary receiver for the Bears. Doubs has 202 receptions, 2,424 receiving yards, and 21 touchdowns through four seasons. The added benefit of signing him would be that the Bears would be plucking him from a division rival, too.
The Bears need a Drew Dalman replacement
As mentioned above, the Bears were busy adding to the roster in the offseason last offseason. Most notably, they revamped the offensive line. The team made trades for Joe Thuney and Jonah Jackson. They also signed Drew Dalman to be their starting center. The moves paid off, as Williams spent a lot more time upright and not scrambling for his life during his sophomore season.
Dalman even earned his first Pro Bowl nod. The 27-year-old appeared to be the leader of Chicago's trenches for years to come, but then he pulled off the most shocking retirement decision since Andrew Luck. In the middle of his prime and with only five seasons under his belt, Dalman decided to call it quits, surely putting the Bears in a scramble in the process.
Assuming Tyler Linderbaum is out of their price range, the Bears likely won't be able to add a center as talented as Dalman to replace him this offseason. They need to get somebody who can fill in, though. Connor McGovern would be an option to sign. The ex-Buffalo Bills center was a Pro Bowler as recently as 2024 and would help ease the burden of Dalman's sudden retirement if he were signed as a free agent.
Bears should target top free agent on the open market
While Doubs and McGovern would be good gets from a positional need perspective, the Bears need to be willing to pursue the best player available in free agency. With George Pickens and Breece Hall tied to the franchise tag, Trey Hendrickson will be arguably the best player on the open market this offseason.
Hendrickson has twice recorded 17.5 sacks in a season, even leading the league in that regard just two seasons ago. However, the likelihood of him returning to the Cincinnati Bengals seems slim after an ugly contract holdout with the team. The Bears were the number one defensive team in turnover margins last year, but replicating so many interceptions will be hard to do next season, and most analysts don't view the defense as elite quite yet.
Hendrickson would help ensure the Bears still win the turnover battle going forward. He gets after the quarterback and forces signal callers into bad decisions. Chicago's great secondary would reap the rewards. The Bears must do whatever it takes to sign Hendrickson, and doing so would firmly cement them as Super Bowl contenders next season.
