A fine line for Ryan Poles' 2025 offseason acquisitions

Bears general manager Ryan Poles was more aggressive in free agency in 2025 than he had been in his first three seasons. But with quarterback Caleb Wiliams entering his second season and coach Ben Johnson in place, the stakes are higher. Poles needs get more bang for his buck. 

Poles’ three previous forays into free agency have upgraded the roster he inherited from Ryan Pace, but still with only two unqualified hits — linebacker T.J. Edwards (three years, $19.5 million in 2023) has been more cost-effective (if not more effective overall) than the more heralded Tremaine Edmunds (four years, $72 million). Defensive tackle Andrew Billings (one year,, $2.75 million) made such immediate impact as a run stopper, he was rewarded with a two-year, $8 million extension in 2023. And while Billings himself wasn’t up to the same level early in 2024, the Bears’ defense plummeted after he suffered a season-ending torn pectoral muscle against the Cardinals in Week 9. 

The most productive of Poles’ other free-agent signings haven’t quite reached that cost-efficiency mark — safety Kevin Byard (two years, $15 million), running back D’Andre Swift (three years, $24.5 million), defensive tackle Justin Jones (two years, $12 million), linebacker Nick Morrow (one year, $5 million), center Coleman Shelton (one year, $3 million) and guard Matt Pryor (one year, $1.175 million). Jones, Morrow, Shelton and Pryor were no re-signed. Byard and Swift are back in 2025, as of now.

Bears defensive tackle Grady Jarrett (behind microphones) talks to the media on March 12 at Halas Hall.

Poles’ acqusitions in free agency this offseason (including guard Joe Thuney in a trade with the Chiefs and guard Jonah Jackson in a trade with the Rams) come with generally better resumes but also reasonable question marks. The key factor is that all of them have higher ceilings than many of the previous Poles free-agent window acquisitions — like Thuney over Nate Davis; Drew Dalman over Coleman Shelton; Dayo Odeyingbo over DeMarcus Walker; Jackson over Lucas Patrick/Ryan Bates; and Grady Jarrett over Billings. 

But they all arrive at Halas Hall with something to prove. Here’s where they stand heading into the start of the Bears’ offseason program: 

Joe Thuney, G 

On paper it’s a no-brainer. Thuney not only was a first-team All-Pro with the Chiefs last season, but he was voted the team’s MVP — ahead of Patrick Mahomes, Travis Kelce and Chris Jones. He received four votes for the NFL Offensive Player of the Year Award (finishing 10th). He (along with the Lions’ Penei Sewell) was the first lineman to get OPOY votes since Bengals left tackle Anthony Munoz in 191. 

But there’s the rub. If Thuney had that much gas left in the tank at 32, why wouldn’t the Chiefs — whose offensive line was the obvious culprit in both of their Super Bowl losses in the Mahomes era — jump though salary-cap hoops to keep him? 

Thuney, who has missed two games in nine NFL seasons, has one-year left on his current contract ($16 million). And while it was presumed the Bears acquired him with the intention of signing him to an extension, Thuney was non-comittal about that in his introductory press conference. Does Poles want to see what he’s got before splurging on a 33-year-old guard with 167 games of NFL mileage on him? Should he? 

Bears guard Joe Thuney answers a question at his introductory press conference on March 12 at Halas Hall.

And Thuney’s adjustment to a re-built offensive line in a developing first-year offense with the Bears after being inserted into established lines in top-10 offenses with the Patriots and Chiefs bears watching. The question was asked and answered at Thuney’s introductory press conference. But sometimes that’s the kind of issue that looks bigger than you thought once the games begin. 

Regardless, Thuney is solid bet for 2025. The comp is Josh Sitton, who was coming off three consecutive All-Pro (second team) seasons with the Packers when he was suddenly released at the 53-man roster cutdown in 2016 and immediately signed by the Bears. 

Sitton made the Pro Bowl in his first season with the Bears, though he wasn’t as effective as he had been with the Packers. And after missing two games in seven seasons (123 of 125) with the Packers, he missed seven games in two seasons with the Bears and was let go after the 2017 season.

Drew Dalman, C

Dalman has the lowest profile of the three new Bears offensive linemen. He’s a fourth-round draft pick (114th overall in 2021). He’s never made a Pro Bowl. And he’s played in anonymity on Falcons’ offenses that ranked 13th (2024), 26th (2023) and 15th (2022) in scoring the past three years. 

But he could end up having the most staying power and at least figures to be a solid upgrade over Poles’ first three attempts at finding a center — Lucas Patrick (two years, $8 million in 2022), Ryan Bates (acquired from the Bills for a fifth-round draft pick in 2024) and Coleman Shelton (one-year, $3 million in 2024).  Dalman is 26, with low mileage (40 starts, 2,607 offensive snaps) abut still has credentials. He ranked fourth among NFL centers last season by Pro Football Focus — for whatever that’s worth. 

Poles’ struggle for an above-average center with the Bears after helping scout and draft Creed Humphrey for the Chiefs in 2021 (second round, 63rd overall) has been a little mystifying. He’s paying top dollar to make up for it. Dalman’s three-year, $42-million contract makes him the second-highest paid center per season ($14 million) — behind Humphrey ($18 million) and the Lions’ Frank Ragnow ($13.5 million), who made the Pro Bowl each of the past three seasons in Johnson’s offense. 

Dayo Odeyingbo, DE

Signing Odeyingo to a three-year, $42 million contract after a three-sack season in 2024 puts Poles in treacherous waters — projecting Odeyingbo to blossom into a standout edge rusher in Year 5 while playing opposite Montez Sweat. 

Dangerous territory, because Poles — at this moment — has had more misses than hits in trying to find diamonds in the rough. Wide receiver/kick returner Velus Jones in the third round (71st overall) in the 2022 draft. Defensive end Dominque Robinson in the fifth round of the 2023 draft. Offensive lineman Kiran Amegadjie in the third round of the 2024 draft. And edge rusher Austin Booker in the fifth round of the 2024 draft. (Jones was cut and Robinson will have a tough time making the 2025 team, but Amegadjie and Booker still have time to prove Poles right). Even punter Tory Taylor in the fourth round last year could end up being a little too cute. 

Odeyingbo is the biggest test of the judgment and intuition of Poles and his player personnel staff. It’s a slightly lighter version of Pernell McPhee, who was productive as a role player with a standout Ravens defense in 2014 and was projected to blossom with more snaps with the Bears when Ryan Pace signed McPhee to a five-year, $40 million contract. 

McPhee wasn’t a total bust, but he was a disappointment — with 14 sacks in 36 games over three mostly uninspiring seasons. McPhee was a risk worth taking in Pace’s first season as a general manager, inheriting a defense that finished 31st in points and 30th in yards in 2014. 

And given the ample cap space Poles had to work with, Odeyingbo is a similar chance worth taking. The enticing hook with the signing of Odeyingbo is his presumed fit in Dennis Allen’s defense. Sometimes those things look precient and accurate. Other times they become narratives that sure sounded good at the time. We’ll see. 

The Bears' braintrust watches Jonah Jackson (left) and Joe Thuney (right) at their introductory press conference.

Grady Jarrett, DT 

After too many years of doing this, I’ve developed a reflexive skepticism about players who win the press conference as overwhelmingly as Jarrett did when he was introduced March 12 at Halas Hall. The excitement of reporters’ seeing a developing story that was going to write itself was palpable as Jarrett’s engaging back-and-forth opened strong and just kept getting better. 

McPhee’s captivating opening press conference (“I’m violent, and that’s all you need, to be violent.”) was nothing compared to Jarrett’s. It was closer to Martellus Bennett, who was as expressive as he was articulate in his opening press conference in 2013 (“Words really can't express the way I feel right now. I'm an energetic guy outside and inside, so right now my heart's smiling as well as my legs because I'm ready to run down the middle of the field and catch some balls from [Jay] Cutler.”)

Jarrett had every bit of that enthusiasm and then some. He insisted “my best days are still ahead of me … my body is strong and my mind is hungry to learn.” Those are words that sound so good at the introductory press conference but often ring hollow in the middle of the season, when a guy like Jarrett can still make plays every now and then, but lacks the consistent effectiveness that made him a Pro Bowl player with the Falcons. 

Regardless of what he has left, Jarrett looks like a player more likely on the way down than the way up. He’ll turn 32 on April 28. He’s played 10 seasons and 152 games (137 starts). And he’s coming off a good-but-not-great season in 2024 after suffering a season-ending torn ACL in 2023.

Jarrett was offered a positive spin on his post-ACL season — that Year 2 of the recovery is better than Year 1 — and ran with it. That’s a narrative that sounds great and has some credibility. But — pardon my skepticism — it probably doesn’t happen as often at 32 as it does at 25 or 26. We’ll see about that as well. 

And it was difficult to tell just how many teams were eager to sign him off his 2024 season — though not many had the opportunity. The Bears signed Jarrett to a three-year, $43.5 million contract just hours after Jarrett was released by the Falcons. Asked if other teams were interested, Jarrett wouldn’t say. “The right team reached out — Chicago Bears,” he said.

Asked if there was a team that at least made it a tough decision, Jarrett again deflected, this time even more curiously. It seemed like a simple question.

“I’m in a perfect place and even worrying about that at this point is so pointless and such a waste of energy and it’s disrespectful to the people that took a chance on me and believed in me.”

Jarrett might be worth the cost — especially if Allen can find the limited role with Gervon Dexter and Billings that likely will suit Jarrett’s game as it currently stands. But he at least indirectly acknowledged one likely reality. The Bears “took a chance” on him. 

Jonah Jackson, G

Jackson’s opening press conference wasn’t nearly as captivating as Jarrett’s, but I found it more substantive. The 28-year-old former Pro Bowl guard, acquired from the Rams for a sixth-round draft pick, acknowledged a difficult season with the Rams — playing out of position, getting hurt, then getting beaten out by sixth-round rookie Beaux Limmer. 

“There’s a lot of things that happened that are out of my control,” Jackson said. “Positional change. I had an injury you can’t even predict to happen — it happened in a car accident … like a freak accident. But it comes with the game. This game’s all about trials and tribulations, how you handle it.” 

A difficult season, but not a lost season or a seaosn he already has forgotten. “You can’t forget seasons like that,” Jackson said, “It makes you into the person that you are. I was able to hone my craft, sharpen my toolbox. I was able to work on both sides of the ball [left and right, I presume], so I feel comfortable and I feel like a dynamic player. My body was able to heal up. I feel great. Ready to roll.”

That sounds great. And Jackson also comes with the Ben Johnson seal of approval after playing for Johnson with the Lions in 2022 and 2023. But he’s three seasons removed from his Pro Bowl season of 2021. And — including the “freak accident” and subsequent benching with the Rams — Jackson has played in just 13 of his team’s last 34 games. And he has a $10.5 million salary cap hit for 2025, per spotrac.com. 

That’s a calculated risk that will say something about Johnson’s intuition, or at least how his luck is running — a factor that can’t be ignored considering the Bears’ health issues on the offensive line in the Poles era. 

At his best, Jackson is an upgrade over Davis/Pryor — potentially a significant one. But he’ll have to be a better player — and a more fortunate one — for Ben Johnson than he was for Sean McVay. 

Even when you’re signing guys like Joe Thuney and Grady Jarrett, free agency is a bit of a crapshoot. And Ryan Poles has to start winning more than his share. Johnson gives him a chance to do that.