It’s Time for the Chicago Bears to Commit to a Full Rebuild
By Jon Dove
The Chicago Bears planned to use this free agency period to add some serious talent to their roster, but it appears they have missed out on many of their targets.
Things in Chicago are pretty gloomy this morning as the Chicago Bears have struck out on many of their top free agent targets. It seems as though they were very active in negotiations but were unable to land players like Stephon Gilmore, A.J. Bouye and Ricky Wagner.
The situation has also extended to the secondary targets with Logan Ryan and D.J. Swearinger finding new homes. Chicago inability to land several high impact free agents means it’s time for them to fully commit to the rebuild.
This is a franchise that needs to look in the mirror and realize they just don’t have the talent to compete. Signing Mike Glennon doesn’t move the arrow and only gives them a “bridge” quarterback with some upside.
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The wide receiver group is a complete mess with Alshon Jeffery now with the Philadelphia Eagles and Kevin White’s continued injury problems. Jordan Howard and the offensive line are the lone offensive bright spots.
Defensively, Chicago has a few young building blocks with Leonard Floyd, Eddie Goldman and Akiem Hicks. The rest of the defense consists of solid veterans and unproven youngsters.
Their inability to sign one of the big-name cornerbacks in this free agency period will keep the defense from taking a major step forward. Chicago now needs to turn to the draft to address their needs which is a slower process.
Most, if not all, general managers feel that the best way to build a roster is through the draft. Chicago’s Ryan Pace has talked about this strategy many times, but the signals coming out of Halas Hall said they planned to spend big during free agency.
Pace now has no choice than to build through the draft, but needs to start taking a more aggressive approach. They shouldn’t be looking to augment their roster with older veterans or attack the draft based on needs.
Chicago must focus on building for the future which means their overall strategy should be adjusted.