INDIANAPOLIS — As the Bears evaluate their options this offseason, some key players under contract aren’t necessarily certain to be back.
In addition to working through their own pending free agents, like starting safeties Kevin Byard and Jaquan Brisker, the Bears have affordable outs on the contracts of linebacker Tremaine Edmunds, tight end Cole Kmet and running back D’Andre Swift. They also could save salary-cap space by trading wide receiver DJ Moore.
For now, Kmet and Swift seem safe. The Combine has a way of speeding up trade talks throughout the league, which could open opportunities for the Bears that would require them to create extra cap space, but general manager Ryan Poles currently plans on those two being on the team this season.
“I feel pretty good about [them] being here, but again, there’s a lot more calls coming in on interest in some of these guys, so we have to sequence that out to see how it impacts our team,” Poles said Tuesday. “I’ve talked about cost of replacement, so what does that look like?
“We know what we need to do, but any new, unique opportunities that might pop up are usually going to pop up here, and then we’ll get back and sort it all out and make decisions, but I feel pretty good about those guys.”
Swift rushed for a career-high 1,087 yards and nine touchdowns last season and told the Sun-Times recently he hoped his performance was convincing enough to keep him with the Bears. He’s set to count $8.8 million against the cap this season, the final one of his deal, though the Bears could cut him for a dead-cap hit of $1.3 million.
Kmet had a down year with just 30 catches for 347 yards and two touchdowns as the Bears incorporated first-round pick Colston Loveland into the offense. Kmet has two years, $23.2 million left on his contract with an out this offseason at $3.2 million.
Poles was noncommittal on the future of Edmunds and Moore. He sidestepped a question about releasing Edmunds, who would cost $17.4 million or could be released for $2.4 million, and spoke highly of Moore, saying he’s “happy with him” while leaving the door open for a trade.
“I’ve got to have conversations and see what is the best combination of players we can bring in,” Poles said. “We want him here. 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.”
Moore totaled 2,330 yards and 14 touchdown catches over his first two seasons with the Bears, but slipped to a career-low 50 catches for 682 yards last season.
