We don’t know what it is yet, but the Chicago Bears have a plan as free agency opens on Monday.
The NFC North champions are not being shy, days away from when the new NFL season begins, and Thursday started with the news that they will be dealing top wide receiver DJ Moore to the Buffalo Bills for a second-round pick.
More importantly than the second-round pick in the upcoming NFL Draft, though, was the $16.5 million the team saved going into free agency.
The Bears took another gigantic step forward in telling the rest of the league that they’re going to be heavy in the free agency market with another surprising move as it neared midnight in Chicago.
More news: Chicago Bears Emerge as Heavy Favorite for Maxx Crosby
More news: Chicago Bears Could Draft Champion Wide Receiver to Replace DJ Moore
The NFC North champs are expected to release former Pro-Bowl linebacker Tremaine Edmunds.
A workhorse since coming into the league back in 2018 with the Bills, Edmunds has started 15 games or more in six of his eight seasons in the NFL.
Per Pro Football Focus, Edmunds was an upper-half but not elite linebacker this past season, ranked 34th of the 88 eligible starting linebackers in the league.
Although a positive for the Bears’ defense, like Moore, the money they save from releasing Edmunds gives Chicago even more freedom entering the free agency period.
After the sudden retirement of center Drew Dalman, the Bears now have over $40 million in new cap space to play with once the gates truly open on Monday and teams can start negotiating before the signing window begins on Wednesday.
While the Bears need severe help in the secondary, their main target come Monday could be the big man out of Baltimore, center Tyler Linderbaum.
Linderbaum is heralded as one of the best offensive linemen in football and will be one of the most sought-after free agents come the start of the new season next week.
For Edmunds, although he won’t fetch as much as Linderbaum, he will most likely have his own list of suitors wanting an ironman who is one of the better tackling players at his position in football.
Read the full article here
