INDIANAPOLIS — Few problems have persistently pestered Bears general manager Ryan Poles like the defensive line. The trouble started as soon as he walked in the building.
Poles inherited a talent shortage, a salary-cap nightmare and depleted draft capital from predecessor Ryan Pace in 2022, and it was impossible to solve all those issues at once. He unloaded future Hall of Fame pass rusher Khalil Mack in a well-reasoned move to gain cap space and a second-round pick, but the Bears have had the fewest sacks in the NFL since.
Poles’ first big swing in free agency was that same year when he agreed to a deal with up-and-coming defensive tackle Larry Ogunjobi that would’ve given him top-10 pay at the position only for him to fail the Bears’ physical and negate it. Ogunjobi has been a starter ever since, and the Bears are still looking for a game-changing defensive tackle.
They need to find answers at defensive end and tackle quickly, and the No. 10 overall pick in the upcoming draft gives them a chance to do so. Left tackle is high on the Bears’ list of needs, too, but they’d be justified in choosing a defensive lineman, too.
They likely will be in reach of any pass rusher other than Penn State’s Abdul Carter, who is a contender to go first overall. That would still leave standouts like Georgia’s Jalon Walker and Mykel Williams, Marshall’s Mike Green, Tennessee’s James Pearce and others in play.
Michigan’s Mason Graham is the top-rated defensive tackle, and it seems likely the Bears would need to trade up at least a couple spots to get him. If he’s unavailable, they could take Ole Miss’ Walter Nolen or Graham’s teammate Kenneth Grant.
The Bears will have a clearer direction at No. 10 once they get through free agency, which opens March 10, and are scrutinizing offensive and defensive line prospects during the NFL Scouting Combine so they’re prepared to pivot. They’re also working to establish how deep the draft is at those positions, keeping in mind they have two early second-round picks at Nos. 39 and 41.
“There’s a strategy to that,” Poles said. “You want to see how you could put the puzzle together where you can fill all the needs perfectly.”
It’d be easier if the Bears didn’t have so many pressing needs in the fourth year of Poles’ rebuild. In total, they could be searching for six new starters on the line of scrimmage this offseason, plus they have lesser concerns at running back, safety, wide receiver and tight end.
The to-do list wasn’t supposed to be this long at this stage. Poles estimated before the start of the 2023 season that he’d completed 75%-80% of his roster checklist in the rebuild and said last offseason it’d be “really hard to make this team” because of how much talent he thought he’d stacked up.
He has found some potential solutions on the defensive line in pass rusher Montez Sweat and tackle Gervon Dexter, but neither is conclusive.
Sweat, who cost the Bears a second-round pick in a trade and is on a four-year, $98 million contract, had just 5½ sacks last season and needs a wingman. Dexter, a 2023 second-rounder, made progress last season but still has more to go. And journeyman Andrew Billings is a good run defender but not likely a long-term pillar.
“You really need someone to puncture the pocket from the interior for the [defensive ends] to be successful and productive,” Poles said.
It’s impossible to be an elite defense without that force up front, and that’s what makes drafting a defensive end or tackle plausible at No. 10 even with alarms going off on the offensive line.
