Of all the Bears’ acquisitions during their offseason spending spree, defensive tackle Grady Jarrett is the riskiest. He turns 32 next month, he suffered a torn ACL two seasons ago and the Falcons — his team for a decade — didn’t see enough upside in his future to find a way to keep him.
Jarrett, though, has no interest in hearing about doubts. He also isn’t going to waste time on any hurt feelings about how his run with the Falcons ended. He showed up at Halas Hall on Wednesday and raised expectations with everything he said.
He went beyond the usual “happy to be here” lines and took direct aim at the Packers and quarterback Jordan Love. He admitted to being wowed by coach Ben Johnson’s play calling when he faced him in 2023 and said his respect for defensive coordinator Dennis Allen is “through the roof” from their shared time in the NFC South.
Jarrett even refused to indulge a question about other teams showing interest between the Falcons cutting him Monday morning and the Bears offering $43.5 million over three years that afternoon.
“The right team reached out: Chicago Bears,” Jarrett said. “I’m here, baby, and I’m ready to join this thing and do what we’ve got to do.”
At one point, he apologized for his excitement running off the rails as he went on a tangent about the prestige of playing for the Bears and seeing Hall of Famers’ pictures on the walls, saying with a big laugh, “I’m just so fired up. Sorry, y’all.”
If he has as much left in the tank as he said Wednesday, he could bring a long-needed force of personality and play to the Bears’ defensive line like Akiem Hicks did as a free agent in 2016. That’s a high bar, but Jarrett’s accomplishments and leadership command similar respect.
Like his dad, former Falcons five-time Pro Bowl linebacker Jessie Tuggle, Jarrett was a fixture in his hometown of Atlanta. He was a team captain and twice was the organization’s nominee for Walter Payton Man of the Year. Aside from when he tore his ACL in 2023, he missed three games in the other nine seasons.
Most of that time, he dominated. In addition to being a reliable run stopper, Jarrett had 36 1/2 sacks and forced five fumbles. He made the Pro Bowl and was second-team All-Pro with 7 1/2 sacks in 2019 and earned a Pro Bowl selection again the next season.
He was adamant that his best “is yet to come,” and believed getting an offseason of training at full capacity without any hindrances from the ACL injury will make a big difference.
“Being more removed from that injury, I’m just going to get better,” he said.
Jarrett’s infectious enthusiasm will be an asset on the practice field and the locker room, and it only helps that he arrived preloaded with disdain for the Packers.
When NFL Films mic’d up Jarrett for a game in 2023, one of the clips released showed him going at Love after a play and telling him, “You better pipe down, little [expletive],” before the officials directed him back to his huddle.
“You know I’ve got some crazy ones,” Jarrett said of the times he’s been mic’d. “That one was released, so the stuff that’s not released has got to be super crazy.
“Jordan Love is a good quarterback, but… I went and caught him, so I’ve got that speed on me, too. That was two years ago so I’m only getting faster. So then to walk away from me talking mess, I mean what are we doing? I’m excited to go against him two times a year now.”
That fire has been missing at Halas Hall as the Bears floundered the last few seasons. And they’ve been missing that explosiveness at the heart of their defense, too. Jarrett sounds ready to deliver both.