On the opening day of the NFL’s free agent negotiation period, the Chicago Bears focused on strengthening their linebacker position by signing Tremaine Edmunds, a former standout player from the Buffalo Bills. Edmunds joined T.J. Edwards, who had signed with the Bears a few hours earlier, as the team’s most valuable free agent acquisitions of the offseason thus far.
The Bills selected Edmunds in the first round of the 2018 NFL Draft, trading up to acquire him. He has recorded over 100 tackles in each of his five seasons in the league and was named to the Pro Bowl in 2019 and 2020. In his last year with the Bills in 2022, Edmunds had 102 tackles in total, including six for a loss, one sack, one interception, and seven passes defended.
General manager Ryan Poles ensured that the linebacker position was strengthened by signing both Edwards and Edmunds, although he paid more for the latter. Here’s our initial evaluation of the signing.
Grade: B
Since becoming general manager, Ryan Poles has had a plan for free agency, which involves discovering young players who have the potential to develop further and signing them to affordable contracts. Tremaine Edmunds, who is just 24 years old, is an excellent example of this, although he is Poles’ most expensive signing thus far. Fortunately, the terms of the deal will not constrain the Bears in the future.
Based on Over The Cap’s analysis, Edmunds’ contract is structured such that all guaranteed money is allocated for the first two years. In case the Bears opt to exit the contract after the 2024 season, they will only incur $4.875 million in dead cap, making it a financially sensible deal for both Edmunds and the team, particularly with the Bears having enough cap space. However, the determining factor in this signing’s success will be how well Edmunds integrates into Matt Eberflus’ defense.
The Bears declined to offer Roquan Smith a $100 million contract with a $20 million guarantee, in part due to Matt Eberflus’ assessment of his abilities. Eberflus prefers long, athletic players who can make plays on the field, which is a description that fits Edmunds well. While Edmunds is still improving, he possesses all the necessary physical attributes to perform at a high level in the middle linebacker position for the Bears. However, consistency has been a challenge for him in the past.
The only downside to this signing, which prevents it from getting an A grade, is that the Bears already signed Edwards to a relatively inexpensive contract before agreeing to a deal with Edmunds. Considering the large number of quality free agents available, some may question whether it was necessary for the Bears to pursue Edmunds and outbid other teams for his services, especially when they had other important needs to address. Nevertheless, there’s no denying that the Bears improved their defense with this move, which was much-needed given their poor record last year, and it certainly generated a lot of buzz.
