2023 free agency – Page 29 – Syndication Server

Bears 2023 free agency profile: DT Javon Hargrave

Javon Hargrave fits the mold for what the Bears are looking for in a disruptive three-technique.

NFL free agency will be here before we know it, and the Chicago Bears have plenty of work to do. Luckily, general manager Ryan Poles has $100 million to work with to bring in some impact players as he looks to retool the roster.

Here at Bears Wire, we’re highlighting some potential free agent targets and breaking down their 2022 performance and whether or not they’re a fit in Chicago.

Next up is defensive tackle Javon Hargrave, a disruptive interior lineman that would serve as a dominant three-technique in Matt Eberflus’ defense. But at 30 years old, would the Bears elect to pay him or go after a younger option?

Bears 2023 free agency preview: Should Chicago bring back Matt Adams?

Matt Adams served as a contributor on defense and special teams. But as the Bears overhaul the roster, will he be back?

NFL free agency will be here before we know it, and the Chicago Bears have plenty of players set to hit the market. From key starters to valuable reserves, general manager Ryan Poles will have important decisions to make about who to bring back.

Here at Bears Wire, we’re going through each individual player and breaking down their 2022 performance and whether or not they fit in the Bears’ long-term plans.

Next up is linebacker Matt Adams, who came to Chicago with an understanding of Matt Eberflus’ scheme. Adams would be an affordable option to bring back in 2023. But do the Bears want him back?

Bears 2023 free agency profile: LT Orlando Brown Jr.

If LT Orlando Brown Jr. hits free agency, would he be a good fit with the Bears?

Here at Bears Wire, we’re highlighting some potential free agent targets and breaking down their 2022 performance and whether or not they’re a fit in Chicago.

First up is left tackle Orlando Brown Jr., who’s arguably the best offensive lineman currently set to hit the free agent market and would upgrade the Bears offensive line. But Brown’s also a prime candidate to receive the franchise tag from the Kansas City Chiefs.

Cowboys expect pair of FAs to be ready for training camp

A pair of key Cowboys free agents are expected to be back for training camp, the question is whose camp will they be in. | From @CDBurnett7

The Cowboys have decisions to make. Free agency’s tampering period starts March 13 while the franchise tag deadline is a week away on March 7. Two names that are at the top of the list for Dallas are running back Tony Pollard and offensive tackle Terence Steele.

The pair were key players in 2022 but injuries led to a derailment of Dallas’ offense. Steele’s torn ACL came during the regular season, and although Tyron Smith filled in admirably in pass protection, the run game suffered. Pollard’s broken leg in the divisional round sucked the life out of the offense in a loss to the 49ers. Amid the questions about their status as Cowboys, The Athletic’s Jon Machota reported that Dallas expects the two pending free agents to be back for training camp.

Cowboys expect RT Terence Steele (knee) and RB Tony Pollard (leg) to be ready for training camp

— Jon Machota (@jonmachota) February 28, 2023

This seems like a run-of-the-mill tweet but it could confirm that the Cowboys plan on retaining both in the next month.

The running back situation in Dallas is a complex one. Pollard’s broken leg and high ankle sprain present concerns on if he’ll return to form for 2023. The franchise tag presents the team an opportunity to sign Pollard for a prove-it year coming off injury while the team could also move on from Ezekiel Elliott in the offseason. While those two are household names, the Cowboys could look to the draft for a replacement or developmental back.

Steele’s situation is much more simple. As a third-year undrafted free agent, Steele is a restricted free agent and it makes things easy on Dallas. A possible tender pushes teams away from paying the Texas Tech product. It would likelycost Dallas just $4.3 million to keep him at a minimum, with a $6 million tender almost assuring his return. Based on Machota’s tweet, it seems the team is moving forward expecting both to suit up again in 2023.

ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler says Saints are ‘ready’ to get deal done with Derek Carr

ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler says the New Orleans Saints are ‘ready’ to get a deal done with Derek Carr, but he’s biding his time a while longer:

Derek Carr is taking his time in selecting his new team, but the New Orleans Saints appear to be ready for him to hurry up and sign on the dotted line. ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler shared some insight on that front during a Wednesday interview with Jets 360’s Eric Allen.

Fowler said of the Saints’ ongoing talks with Carr: “My understanding is they want to get something done with Derek Carr, like they’re ready to do that. So he has options. I get the sense he’s just waiting it out patiently so that second team can get heavily involved along with the Saints, and then you have more leverage. It kind of helps him to wait a little bit in that way.”

The New York Jets are the other team showing the most interest in Carr, but they’re waiting on Aaron Rodgers to descend from whichever mountain he’s summitted for a bit of self-reflection and choose whether to accept a trade to the New Jersey metro after spending his career in small-town Green Bay. If Rodgers isn’t willing to play ball, the Jets suddenly pick up the pace of negotiations with Carr, and he’s hoping to play them against the Saints to get the best deal for himself.

It’s frustrating, but that’s the time of the year on the NFL calendar. Private meetings and dinners and conversations are raging in Indianapolis as agents, coaches, and executives from all across the league’s landscape converge for the NFL Scouting Combine, and Carr’s path forward is a subplot full of intrigue. You’d like to resolve this quickly, and so would the Saints, but it’s in Carr’s interest to hold out as long as he can before putting pen to paper.

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Bears 2023 free agency preview: Will Khari Blasingame return in 2023?

Khari Blasingame, the first fullback in Chicago in four years, played a key role in the Bears’ top-ranked rushing attack in 2022.

Here at Bears Wire, we’re going through each individual player and breaking down their 2022 performance and whether or not they fit in the Bears’ long-term plans.

Next up is fullback Khari Blasingame, the first fullback in Chicago in four years and who also played a key role in the Bears’ top-ranked rushing attack in 2022.

What the Bears are looking for in defensive linemen this offseason

Ryan Poles and Matt Eberflus explain what the Bears are looking for in defensive linemen in free agency and the NFL draft.

The Bears have a number of needs to address this offseason, but none more important than the defensive line, which was the league’s worst in 2022.

When you ultimately look at it, Chicago could have four new starters along the defensive line heading into the 2023 season. So there’s plenty of work to be done, and they have the resources to upgrade the position significantly.

Bears general manager Ryan Poles and head coach Matt Eberflus met with the media at the NFL Scouting Combine, where they discussed exactly what they’re looking for in a defensive lineman.

“Violence. Tenacity. Length,” said Poles.

“Big, long and fast,” said Eberflus.

Considering the needs at both three-technique and edge rusher, is there one position that will be prioritized over the other? Poles said it will ultimately come down to the evaluation of “how much they affect the game in both the run and the pass.”

Specifically looking at the NFL draft, Chicago has an important decision to make at No. 1. The ideal scenario would be the Bears trading back inside the top four and still managing to land either Georgia defensive tackle Jalen Carter or Alabama edge rusher Will Anderson Jr.

When looking specifically at three-tech — the most important position in Eberflus’ defense — the Bears need to find a disruptive player to make this defense go.

While Daron Payne is off the market after the Commanders gave him the franchise tag, there are still some big-name veteran options for Chicago in free agency, including Javon Hargrave and Dre’Mont Jones. And the Bears have the money to go get one.

Still, Poles believes they’re in a good position to land an impact three-technique, be it in free agency or the draft.

“We will see after these next few days and weeks who is available in free agency and where they fall in our value chart and board,” Poles said. “Then if it’s not there, then maybe that turns to the draft. That’s the beautiful thing about balancing both of those things. That’s why we spent so much time evaluating both sides to kind of see what’s going to be available to us and where we need to attack in both of those areas in terms of free agency and the draft.”

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Bears 2023 free agency preview: Will Patrick Scales be back in Chicago?

Patrick Scales has been a mainstay on the Bears for the last eight years. But will he be back for another season?

Here at Bears Wire, we’re going through each individual player and breaking down their 2022 performance and whether or not they fit in the Bears’ long-term plans.

Next up is long snapper Patrick Scales, who’s been a mainstay on this roster for the last eight years. But will he be back for another season?

Stephen Jones: Cowboys looking to extend CeeDee Lamb, Trevon Diggs

Diggs would be entering the final year of his rookie contract in 2023; Lamb can be given a fifth-year option. The team wants to keep both. | From @ToddBrock24f7

The to-do list for the Cowboys this offseason seems to be growing longer by the day.

Executive vice president Stephen Jones huddled with reporters at the NFL scouting combine in Indianapolis on Tuesday, and for the second day in a row, he found himself talking about extending some of the team’s star talent.

Wide receiver CeeDee Lamb and cornerback Trevon Diggs are both now eligible for contract extensions. And Jones says both fourth-year players stand to be key components of the roster moving forward.

“Obviously, they’re in our plans long-term,” Jones told media members, echoing the sentiment he used in a Monday report when talking about the club needing a plan “to ultimately extend” quarterback Dak Prescott.

“You’re always looking at something like that,” he said regarding doing the same with Lamb and Diggs.

The Cowboys selected both players in 2020’s draft. Lamb was a first-round pick, so the team can simply place a fifth-year option on him, locking him up for one extra season before having to re-work his financials for the 2025 campaign.

It is expected the Cowboys will go this route with last year’s 1,300-yard receiver. The fifth-year option- due by May 1- would bump Lamb’s salary up to just under $18 million in 2024. That’s a massive raise over what he’s getting now, but still below what the league’s top receivers are hauling in.

Diggs will be entering the fourth and final year of his rookie deal unless he were to get an extension this offseason.

It may seem like a no-brainer, but the organization’s recent history of proactively reaching extensions is not particularly good.

They did it three times in 2019, extending linebacker Jaylon Smith, right tackle La’el Collins, and running back Ezekiel Elliott. Smith made it just two years and change into his five-year extension before getting cut; Collins played only another 27 games on his before being released. Elliott’s six-year extension made him the highest-paid rusher in the game at the time, but his production has declined dramatically since then and put his future with the team very much up in the air.

It’s thought that Diggs, who led the league in picks in 2021 and is tied for the most interceptions leaguewide since turning pro- would be in line to earn over $15 million per year if he were to hit the open market now. Give him another season of terrorizing opposing quarterbacks (and time for more corners to shift the market price at the position), and that dollar amount would rise even higher in 12 months’ time.

According to Jones, it sounds like the Cowboys are willing to write a check now to keep Diggs from hitting free agency after 2023.

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Bears could potentially trade No. 1 pick before free agency

Ryan Poles said there are “some scenarios” where the Bears could look to trade back from the No. 1 pick before free agency begins.

All eyes are on the Chicago Bears this offseason, especially as it pertains to the 2023 NFL draft. The Bears are in possession of the No. 1 overall pick, and general manager Ryan Poles confirmed that they’re looking to trade out of the top spot.

During his press conference at the NFL Scouting Combine on Tuesday, Poles said there are “some scenarios” where the Bears could look to trade back from the first overall pick before free agency begins next month, if they ultimately decide to deal the pick.

“A clearer view of what we need,” Poles said, “and there are some scenarios to add players as well, which gives us clarity for what we need to add in the draft.”

Chicago is sitting in a prime position ahead of free agency in a couple of weeks, where they boast the league’s most salary cap space (roughly $100 million). But there are a number of needs that Poles needs to address, particularly on the defensive and offensive lines. So what the Bears are able to accomplish in free agency should make it clear what the priority will be in the draft (and having additional picks would certainly help).

Should the Bears deal the top selection — and they’ll no doubt be fielding offers this week at the combine — there are a good number of teams who could be looking to move up for a quarterback. Whether it’s inside the top four with the Texans and Colts or inside the top 10 with the Raiders and Panthers.

Ultimately, it comes down to what Chicago opts to do with quarterback Justin Fields. Poles reaffirmed his stance that Fields will be the team’s starting quarterback in 2023 — at least for “right now” — but that won’t stop him from doing his due diligence on the quarterbacks in this draft class.

Still, all indications are the Bears will move forward with Fields as their QB1 and look to trade out of the top spot and land some additional draft capital. But just how far are they willing to move back? That’s the question.

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