Column: It’s a different NFL Combine feeling for the Chicago Bears. Here’s why it’s a good thing
Mike Florio says Bears’ contention window is 'unlimited' | Toyota Talks
On this week's Toyota Talks, Cassie goes 1-on-1 with Pro Football Talk's Mike Florio of NBC Sports at the NFL Combine. Find out why Mike believes the Bears' contention window is 'unlimited' and also why he loves the Packers trash talk from Ben Johnson.
INDIANAPOLIS - If the 2026 NFL Combine were a song, the Chicago Bears have begun to sing a different tune.
Heck, it might be a completely different genre than what we’re used to.
Instead of adding a blue-chip prospect with a top-10 selection, the Bears are picking back in the mid-20s range. There might not be a player who has a Colston Loveland-type of impact, but there could be a player who helps the Bears at a high level, all the same.
This is a good thing.
It’s a very good thing because it means the Bears have the core of their roster in place. They need to keep making additions, but the tune is different because the addition of a good prospect isn’t going to lift the Bears into Super Bowl contention.
It’s a good thing because the most impactful additions aren’t going come through the 2026 NFL Draft.
What we know:
The Bears are going to re-tool their defensive line. We know this because head coach Ben Johnson and general manager Ryan Poles said this earlier in the week.
That could come through the draft. The Bears have met with a few key prospects, both with first-round grades and others with day-two or day-three grades.
Ohio State’s Kayden McDonald seems like the best fit. He’s a natural run-stuffing defensive tackle the Bears need, especially if the Bears are going to make a handful of changes on defense.
But, that’s not the biggest news that’s come out of Indianapolis.
The Bears gave linebacker Tremaine Edmunds permission to seek a trade. Poles said he’s gotten calls on quarterback Tyson Bagent. NFL Insider Jordan Schultz has reported the Bears have also gotten calls about defensive tackle Gervon Dexter Sr. and wide receiver DJ Moore.
"We got to make some tough decisions," Poles said.
Could Tyson Bagent be traded? Takeaways from Ben Johnson and Ryan Poles at the NFL Combine
Here’s what we learned from Ben Johnson and Ryan Poles on Tuesday at the NFL Combine, where we learned about Tyson Bagent's trade status and the Bears' draft strategy.
It’s easier said than done. But, this is where we are.
Instead of the focus being on which prospects have met with the Bears, and if that was a formal interview or an informal one, or what direction the Bears might go at No. 25, the focus is on who will depart this roster.
I have no real insight into what might happen. It feels like the Bears are still surveying what they have, too.
Poles was talking about how he wants to keep a player like Moore, but his contract (which has a team-high $28 million cap hit this season) makes the team think about potential options.
The Bears are already moving on from Edmunds. Be it a trade or a release, they’re going to save the $15 million that comes with the team moves on from him. This isn’t something to celebrate, either. Edmunds is a good player who was playing at a high level before he got injured.
Moore caught two of the most important touchdown passes in recent Bears’ memory. His game-winner against the Packers was the NFL’s Moment of the Year.
These are difficult decisions to think about, let alone make. It only happens if the Bears are winners and have a core established around quarterback Caleb Williams.
That core won 11 games. Williams broke the single-season passing record with the offense built around him, too. The defense won games with various starters injured and missing time.
This Combine is about the Bears finding young players to supplement the core they now have. That’s what happens when you’re ahead of the curve.
That’s a very good thing that the Bears are ahead of the timeline we thought they’d be on.
NFL Combine: What we learned about the Chicago Bears’ interest in defensive linemen
Bears general manager Ryan Poles was specific about what he wants on the defensive line. Here’s what we learned about the Bears’ interest in the defensive trenches at the NFL Combine on Wednesday.
What's next:
What happens next depends on the kind of conversions Poles has in Indianapolis. He very well could trade Bagent ahead of a draft class that’s thin at quarterback. He could move Moore and free up plenty of cap space.
We don’t know how likely any of these moves are. We know the conversations are happening.
The reality is that these moves happen because every year is different. After the season ended against the Los Angeles Rams, Bears players lamented how the overtime loss was the last time the 2025 Bears would play together.
We now know how that will include a new starting left tackle, linebacker and safety for the Bears in 2026. They might trade for those players or sign them in free agency. You can’t draft all of them in the first round of the draft, and the No. 25 overall pick isn’t the last piece of the Bears’ contending puzzle either.
How they find those starters and pieces to the puzzle is the process of creating the 2026 Bears, though.
It’s a much better position to be a handful of pieces away, compared to trying to piece together a core to win with.