Tag: James Daniels

8 Bears players among PFF’s Top 200 pending free agents

The Bears have several pending free agents that rank among PFF’s top 200 this offseason.

We’re just a few weeks away from the start of the NFL’s free agency, where there are no shortage of big-name players set to hit the open market.

The Chicago Bears have a few that figure to be attractive options for teams across the league, including wide receiver Allen Robinson, defensive tackle Akiem Hicks and offensive lineman James Daniels.

Pro Football Focus unveiled their list of the Top 200 pending free agents, and the Bears were well-represented with eight players making the list.

Here’s a look at the Bears’ pending free agents that made PFF’s list of Top 200 players slated to hit free agency:

Bears 2022 free agency preview: Will James Daniels remain in Chicago?

We’re taking a look at Bears pending free agents, recapping their 2021 season and looking ahead to the future. Next up: James Daniels.

Free agency is just around the corner, and Chicago Bears general manager Ryan Poles has plenty of work to do with this roster. There are some important decisions he has to make about who to add to the current roster and which pending free agents to retain heading into 2022.

Looking ahead to free agency, we’re breaking down every Bears free agent’s 2021 season, including the team’s need at the position and predicting whether they stay or go in free agency.

Next up is interior lineman James Daniels, who is expected to garner attention in free agency. Does Daniels fit into Chicago’s plan at offensive line in 2022?

James Daniels dubbed free agent the Bears should aim to keep

Bears GM Ryan Poles has an important decision to make about OL James Daniels: Re-sign him or let him walk.

As free agency draws near, the Chicago Bears have a number of positional needs to address to bolster the roster heading into a new era of Bears football.

While there will be plenty of new faces to join the roster, new general manager Ryan Poles also has some  important decisions to make in regards to pending free agents on the roster at the end of last season.

NFL.com’s Gil Brandt examined one free agent that every NFC team must retain. For the Bears, that was offensive lineman James Daniels, who has been solid in four years with the team.

The former second-rounder missed most of 2020 with a torn pectoral, but he bounced back with a strong season in the final year of his rookie deal, earning the best offensive and pass-blocking Pro Football Focus grades of his career thus far while starting in all 17 contests. Re-signing Daniels will make life easier for Justin Fields.

Poles made it clear the offensive line will be a focal point this offseason, where there could be a couple of starting jobs up for grabs. While that will include bringing in some new faces on the offensive line — especially those that fit Poles’ mold for offensive linemen — that also could include retaining a key member of their unit in Daniels.

Projections have Daniels set to garner anywhere from $7 to $10 million per season, which would be quite a hefty haul for Daniels. Then again, Daniels is just 24 years old and has already impressed in his short time in the league.

It’s one of many important decisions Poles will have to make in regards to the roster. Is Daniels someone he can’t afford to lose or someone he’s willing to move on from?

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Bears 2022 offseason preview: Where does Chicago stand at OL?

We’re breaking down each position entering the 2022 offseason. Next is the offensive line, which needs plenty of work.

The Chicago Bears have a clean slate after hiring new general manager Ryan Poles and head coach Matt Eberflus, who will be looking to get this franchise back on track in 2022.

With the offseason in full swing, Poles has plenty of work to do with the current roster, which features some glaring holes at positions of need. Poles will have to decide who to re-sign, who to let walk and who to target outside of the current roster heading into free agency and the NFL draft.

Here at Bears Wire, we’re going position by position to break down where Chicago stands entering the 2022 offseason. Next up is the offensive line, which needs plenty of work.

LOOK: Bears OL James Daniels, Larry Borom working on offseason conditioning

Bears offensive linemen James Daniels and Larry Borom are already putting some work in this offseason.

The Chicago Bears have a slew of needs this offseason, including the offensive line, which could look a lot different in 2022.

New general manager Ryan Poles explained the offensive line will be a focal point this offseason for the Bears, which isn’t a surprise given how much quarterback Justin Fields was hit last season.

While the Bears aren’t set to kick off their offseason program until early April, that hasn’t stopped offensive linemen James Daniels and Larry Borom from getting some offseason work in.

Here’s a look at Daniels and Borom getting some offseason conditioning in at Spear Training Center in Vernon Hills:

Borom is coming off an encouraging rookie season with Chicago, where he started eight games mostly at right tackle. While Borom’s role on the offensive line heading into next season is unclear — it could be at tackle, could be at guard — he’ll be on the roster in 2022.

The same can’t be said for Daniels, who’s set to hit free agency next month. Daniels is expected to be a top interior lineman heading into free agency, and Poles has a big decision to make whether or not to re-sign Daniels or move on.

Well, it’s encouraging that Daniels is seen in the above video wearing a Bears shirt. Although a lot can happen between now and mid-March.

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8 pending free agents the Bears should consider re-signing in 2022

Ahead of free agency, we’re looking at some in-house free agents the Bears should consider re-signing in 2022.

The offseason is in full swing, and we’re just over a month away from the start of the new league year and free agency. And the Bears have some important decisions to make when it comes to in-house free agents.

The Bears are slated to have nearly $30 million in salary cap space, but there are plenty of holes to fill on the roster for new general manager Ryan Poles. Perhaps some of those roster spots will be filled by some of Chicago’s in-house free agents, including some big contributors from last season.

Ahead of free agency, we’re looking at some in-house free agents the Bears should consider re-signing in 2022.

Bears 2021 OL grades: Plenty of questions on the interior and at tackle

We’re taking a look at how the Bears offensive line fared in 2021.

The Chicago Bears wrapped another disappointing season that resulted in the firings of general manager Ryan Pace and head coach Matt Nagy. With the offseason in full swing, it provides an opportunity for the new regime in GM Ryan Poles and head coach Matt Eberflus to look back at went right, what went wrong and how to improve in 2022.

Here at Bears Wire, we’re going position by position through the 2021 Bears and grading every player. Today, we’re evaluating the offensive line, a unit that struggled, giving up a league-leading 58 sacks and allowed pressure on nearly 37 percent of dropbacks, the second-highest rate in the NFL in 2021.

PREVIOUS POSITION REVIEWS: QBS, RBs, WRs, TEs

James Daniels named a free agent the Giants should pursue

Pro Football Focus believes guard James Daniels (Chicago Bears) is a free agent the New York Giants must sign this offseason.

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It seems that almost every offseason the New York Giants are trying to rebuild their offensive line. While they appear to have one of the five positions down with Andrew Thomas, the rest of the line does not seem very formidable.

To help fix this need, Pro Football Focus suggests that the Giants sign James Daniels.

Daniels was the 20th-ranked guard of the 2021 season with a PFF grade of 71.8 as he anchored a sub-par Chicago Bears offensive line.

The Giants’ handling of their interior offensive line this past offseason was baffling, to say the least, trading for two eventual starters just before the season began. They need to stop with the bandaids and make a big move to solidify the unit for quarterback Daniel Jones or whoever will be under center in 2022.

Daniels will still be just 24 years old in Week 1 and has experience playing at all three spots on the interior. Starting at right guard in 2021, he earned a career-high 72.4 run-blocking grade as Chicago leaned further into an outside-zone rushing attack. Daniels has four straight seasons with grades above 65.0 despite constantly changing positions and with the Bears switching from a predominantly inside-zone scheme to the ever-popular wide-zone system. There may be serious untapped potential here.

Daniels has played four seasons in the NFL and has appeared in 54 games with 48 starts. Most recently in 2021, Daniels finally broke out and demonstrated why he was a top offensive line talent from Iowa as he was able to stay healthy starting all 17 games and “earned a career-high 72.4 run-blocking grade.”

Daniels was also an above-average pass blocker as he recorded a PFF pass-blocking grade of 69.3.

The Giants desperately need someone like Daniels on the line as they were the ninth-worst rushing team in 2021, totaling just 1,688 rushing yards. Giants’ quarterbacks were also sacked 38 times and were under constant pressure, inhibiting the offense’s ability to be explosive.

It’s clear that the Giants need to seriously address the offensive front in this rebuild. With this former Hawkeye, they can attempt to start their rebuild from inside the trenches.

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Bears players react to Matt Nagy, Ryan Pace firings

Here’s what David Montgomery, Trevis Gipson and James Daniels had to say after Matt Nagy and Ryan Pace were fired by the Bears.

The Chicago Bears cleaned house Monday firing both head coach Matt Nagy and general manager Ryan Pace.

Nagy finished his Bears career with a 34-33 record, including both of Chicago’s playoff losses. During Pace’s seven-year tenure, the Bears went 48-67 and failed to win a playoff game in two appearances.

News of both firings broke before Chicago media met with some players before parting for the offseason, which allowed for some immediate reaction from some of the young core in place on the roster.

Here’s what running back David Montgomery, outside linebacker Trevis Gipson and offensive lineman James Daniels had to say following Nagy and Pace’s firings.

Bears name team captains for Week 3 vs. Browns

Khalil Mack, James Daniels and J.P. Holtz will be the Bears’ captains when they kick things off against the Browns on Sunday.

As the Chicago Bears gear up their Week 3 game against the Cleveland Browns, there will once again be rotating weekly captains for each game, something head coach Matt Nagy established back in 2018.

There will be one captain from each phase — offense, defense and special teams — which will give different players an opportunity to represent their squad throughout the year.

For their Week 3 game against the Browns, the team captains will be outside linebacker Khalil Mack, right guard James Daniels and tight end/special teamer J.P. Holtz.

If the Bears hope to contain the Browns offense, they’re going to need to get pressure on quarterback Baker Mayfield, which starts with Mack, who recorded his first sack of the season last week against the Bengals.

With Justin Fields making his first NFL start, the offensive line is going to need to come up big for their rookie quarterback. That starts with getting the run game going with David Montgomery, where Daniels and the interior of the offensive line need a big showing.

The Bears special teams have been solid so far this season, and if Chicago is going to win, they need to be solid in all phases, including special teams, where Holtz will be a big factor.

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