The Chicago Bears‘ defense was one of the league’s worst last season at pressuring opposing quarterbacks, and the team did little to address that glaring deficiency during the NFL draft.
As such, Chicago is a candidate for any of the handful of accomplished veteran edge defenders still available via free agency. And unless the team is content to roll with a group headlined by Montez Sweat, Austin Booker and Dayo Odeyingbo coming off a disappointing year cut in half by an Achilles tear, the Bears will probably look to add a stopgap solution in the coming days/weeks.
Among the candidates are Jadeveon Clowney, Cameron Jordan and five-time Pro Bowler Joey Bosa. Bosa is back on the free agent market after playing for the Buffalo Bills in 2025. He appeared in 15 games, starting all of them, and tallied five sacks as well as a league-leading five forced fumbles.
Bosa has battled injury concerns throughout his career, playing in just 14 total games across the 2022-23 seasons combined. However, he has missed just five contests over the past two years and will play next season at 31 years of age.
His days as a top-end edge defender are likely behind him, though his advanced metrics rendered Bosa the No. 17-rated player at the position out of 115 who saw enough snaps to qualify last season, per Pro Football Focus. He finished the campaign with 47 QB pressures and 30 hurries across 336 pass-rush snaps in 2025.
Joey Bosa Pass-Rusher With Highest Projected Price Still Available in Free Agency
GettyFree agent pass-rusher Joey Bosa.
The biggest difference between a player like Bosa and older options like Clowney and Jordan is what he can command on a new contract in terms of years and overall money.
Spotrac projects Bosa’s market value and just shy of $27.5 million over a new two-year deal. Meanwhile, most other pass-rushers still available project for one-year agreements in the single-digit millions rather than eight figures annually.
Chicago currently has $10.8 million in salary cap space at its disposal for the upcoming season.
Bears Added Just 1 Player to Defensive Line in NFL Draft
GettyChicago Bears defensive tackle Shemar Turner.
Chicago may be able to generate more pocket pressure up the middle of the defensive line this season if 2025 second-round pick Shemar Turner can prove an impact player after tearing his ACL midway through his rookie campaign.
But Turner played just 74 defensive snaps across five appearances and amassed zero pressures, zero hurries and zero sacks last season.
Defensive tackle was also a considerable need for Chicago heading into the draft, as the unit produced minimal pass rush up the middle and allowed 5.0 yards per rush to opposing offenses, among the worst figures in the NFL.
But the Bears selected only one defensive lineman across seven picks over the three-day process: defensive tackle Jordan van den Berg out of Georgia Tech.
“The Bears weren’t enamored with this year’s crop of defensive linemen and chose to prioritize other positions instead of adding impact players to their pass rush,” Courtney Cronin of ESPN reported. “Van den Berg will have an opportunity to crack the rotation at DT in training camp and be a depth piece or practice squad member in 2026.”
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