2 sneaky good NFL free agents Bears need to sign
Bears have the cap room to make key moves in free agency This is yet another vital offseason for the Chicago Bears. They showed significant improvement during the 2023 season, yet they still finished tied for third place in the NFC North with the Minnesota Vikings with a 7-10 record. The Bears have the No. 1 pick in the upcoming NFL Draft, and there is a very good chance they will use that pick on USC’s Caleb Williams, the top-rated quarterback. The Bears also have more than $70 million available in salary cap room, and that will give general manager Ryan Poles plenty of options to improve the team.
With that kind of capital available, the Bears will have the opportunity to look at a number of superstar players who will be available in free agency. Players like Chris Jones of the Kansas City Chiefs, Brian Burns of the Carolina Panthers and Justin Madubuike of the Baltimore Ravens are likely to be in the Bears sights.
But building a winning team that has a chance to make a run in the playoffs is not just about bringing in the big names. Teams need vital role players who can perform on a week-in, week-out basis without necessarily breaking the bank.
In today’s NFL, all key players are paid well, but superstars clearly get paid the most and it’s important to build depth and strength throughout the lineup with “sneaky” players who are not the most elite names in the business.
The Bears just sent veteran safety Eddie Jackson packing, so that reveals they will be in the market for a veteran safety who can take a leadership role in the secondary.
Dugger is coming into the prime of his career and he has the kind of size, strength and hitting ability that will make him a major asset to any team that signs him.
He has four seasons under his belt with the Patriots and he has been a solid performer. He is coming off a career best 109 tackles that included 6 tackles for loss and 5 quarterback hits.
The 6-2, 222-pound Duggar also had 2 interceptions, 7 passes defensed, 1 forced fumble and 1.5 sacks.
One of the criticisms of Jackson had been a tendency to back off tackles and not force the action. That is definitely not the case with Dugger, who can set a tone for his teammates with physical play.
WR Gabe Davis, Buffalo Bills
The Bears have not been able to build a consistent offensive team, and while quarterback Justin Fields absorbs much of the blame for that, it is clearly not all his fault.
Fields has issues with accuracy on short- and medium-range passes, and his decision making has also been a problem area. But perhaps the biggest problem on the Chicago offense is a lack of quality pass catchers.
They clearly have one excellent receiver in D.J. Moore, but it seemed like there were many weeks that he was out there by himself because other Chicago receivers had problems with drops or getting open.
It is vital that the Bears bring in wide receivers who are dependable because they can get open and then make the catch.
That description fits Davis quite well. He is a solidly built, 6-2, 225-pound receiver who just completed his fourth season with the Bills. While he is not a superstar, he is quite dependable. He caught 45 passes for 746 yards and 7 touchdowns from Josh Allen last season, and the quarterback gained quite a bit of confidence in him as the season progressed.
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