Chicago Bears general manager Ryan Poles’ approach in the first wave of free agency certainly wasn’t surprising. While it lacked the big-name splashes other teams made, Poles was deliberate in his approach to address some key positional needs and depth issues on the roster.
Poles was only willing to overpay for one player — defensive tackle Larry Ogunjobi, which didn’t even end up happening as he failed to pass his physical.
His other additions were good value signings, including center Lucas Patrick, linebacker Nicholas Morrow, defensive tackle Justin Jones, defensive end Al-Quadin Muhammad and wide receivers Byron Pringle and Equanimeous St. Brown.
Which is line with one reported move that didn’t pan out. According to ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler, it sounds like the Bears were in contention for Steelers right tackle Chukwuma Okorafor, who ultimately proved to be too expensive for Poles’ liking.
Overall, Chicago took a prudent approach to Ryan Poles’ first free agency as the Bears’ GM. The team identified several players as great fits but not worth a bidding war. One example was right tackle Chukwuma Okorafor. He could have been a Bear, but not at three years and $29.25 million, which Pittsburgh was willing to pay to re-sign him.
The Bears still have concerns on their offensive line, where there’s currently a gaping hole at right guard. Chicago signed Patrick to serve as the starting center, but the alignment of the rest of the offensive line is still uncertain at this point.
Cody Whitehair will likely still serve as left tackle while Teven Jenkins and Larry Borom’s roles at left and right tackle, respectively, are more uncertain. The Bears will likely address tackle in the NFL draft, and they recently met with Buffalo Bills restricted free agent Ryan Bates, who would plug that right guard hole.
