Rahimi, Harris & Grote Show - Explaining the Bears conservative free agent moves | Take The North

Episode Date: March 21, 2026

From 'Take The North' (subscribe here): Dan Wiederer and Mark Grote explain their views on why the Bears have not been too aggressive in free agency. To learn more about listener data and our privacy practices visit: https://www.audacyinc.com/privacy-policy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices

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And that's before they have to go out and sign the draft class that they're going to put together in April. And so you're going to have to make moves regardless to free up cap space just to keep the players you currently have on your roster. At some point, there's going to need to be a restructure or some movement of some sort that allows you to create the cap space needed just to be functional. And so they're going to have to have some space available for them during the season so that they can make moves when emergencies arise in that regard. So look, like they don't have a lot of wiggle room to play with right now. I know that social media was a buzz last week when Adam Schaefter in a back and forth on ESPN said that the bears are broke. This is what he was talking about.

Salary cap-wise, they were up against it, you know, and they are up against it, and they'll still be up against it. And so right now, I think you're seeing some of the later waves of free agency produced depth signings. We had a couple of those this week that add to your defense depth-wise. And ultimately, your next big thing, in my opinion, is the NFL draft, which, is coming at the end of April, and that's going to be your next chance to add higher quality players, right? And obviously those are a little bit more cost-efficient because of the rookie contracts. But that's where we're at right now. And so, look, like, I want to get your feedback on this, and then we'll talk about this kind of common question that lingers out there.

Why aren't the bears being more aggressive? Well, yeah, and I guess I'll kind of get into to what you're saying and get into that a little bit. I think one of the things that precludes the bears from being more aggressive on defense. And yes, there might have been a time when the bears were in on the Max Crosby deal, which would have forced them to give up resources and draft picks and all of that. We understand that. It doesn't look like that's going to happen. But I think about the guys, especially on defense that the bears signed last year, Dio Dangbo and Grady Jarrett for sure, Montez Sweat before that. At some point in time, my guess is, is that Ryan Poles' bosses are saying to him,

and I'm sure Ryan Poles is smart enough to know that, like, there was tons of resources put into the defensive line last year, one of them through the draft as well. So that you have to justify those picks at some point in time. It's hard to clean up bad draft picks with signings. We all know that that is, that's a hit or miss sort of prophecy. So I think that's one thing. those two names, Grady Jarrett, Dio O'Dango.

There's also, Dan, there's also the part where, and God, I hope we get to this point, and I don't know that the bears have to rush into it, but you have to think about Caleb Williams, right? And the future signing of him, and I know that they're living in a place right now in a rookie contract where they got a strike, but you do have to think about that. If Caleb continues on the trajectory that he is on, which appears to be very good at the very least, then you have to think about that. You have to think about Roma Dunesay. If he is, and he needs to have a big.

Same draft class as Caleb, right. Yeah. Right. So eventually, and like luckily Colston is in his, Colson Loveland in his rookie contract. You don't have to think about that yet, but eventually you do. You got to think about there.

No, right, too, who's coming much sooner, right? Like eligible now and, and probably those talks start to heat up here before we get too deep into 2006. So, yes, there is a lot of long range planning to this. I had a conversation earlier this week about the idea, of being able to see the big picture, 2026, 27, 28, 29,

and not just looking at it, 2026-centric, right? And I think there is this tendency, this eagerness to feel what the bears accomplished last year and feel like it's now. Now is the time to strike. This window, theoretically, if you do things correctly,

should be open for a while. There should be a... You hear that speeding car? Guys, by now you've heard me talk. about Collars & Co., makers of the dress collar polo. They've already sold over a million of these amazing shirts. Well, Collars & Co. just came out with the new Maverick Performance Blazer. This blazer is sharp and wrinkle-resistant so you can travel anywhere with it. Just throw it in your bag and it will remain wrinkle-free. It even comes with security zip pockets, a sunglasses loop, and an optional

pocket square. So visit Collarsandco.com and use Code Tiki for 20% off at collarsandco.com. that speeding car. Oh, podcasts in downtown Chicago, folks. There is nothing like living in the great big, beautiful city of Chicago. I depend on these sounds. I can't sleep without sounds like that, Dan. I'm glad you identified that as a speeding car and that it wasn't a cat accident in your residence. No, I put the cat away. The cat is sleeping in the closet right now. Don't worry. Yeah, so anyway, your window should be open for several years. And if you really believe in Ben Johnson and Caleb Williams and the pairing of them, your goal

is to plan for a very bright future for many, many years. And that planning can sometimes feel a little bit restrictive in the present, which it is right now, I think, and that's why we're getting some of the reaction we're getting from fans, I think, who they just want more,

and they want more quickly, you know, and the instant gratification wants you to put together a undisputably championship roster now. But I'd remind people, as we did when the season ended. The Bears were like 14th the day after the Super Bowl in odds to win next year's Super Bowl, right? Like it's not like they were one of the top five teams on that list.

And it's like, you better go now or you're never going to go. You know, so just understand your place. And I think, honestly, I think that Ryan Poles has done a good job this offseason of being disciplined and practical in the ways that he needs to be. Yeah. And I mean, again, like, as I said, I think in our last podcast, and you just mentioned it, we need to mention that Caleb and Ben Johnson part every single time. I don't want the Bears to have to depend too much on Caleb Williams to make this season right to fix the holes that they might have this year.

But this might be a year in which they are doing that. And I do understand the angst from Bears fans when there's an 11 win season. And you and I have talked about it tons of times. There has been too many times through the years where we see these pop up seasons. where it's a great season and it's a one-off and then it goes right back down to the bottom. I do fear that and I think Bears fans, there's a little bit of Bears fan trauma that goes along that. And reasonable reporters like us should have a little bit of that trauma as well. Understandable fear, understandable trauma, right? Like justifiable with all those regards.

What I would say is it's possible that the Bears take a small step back in 20206 without ruining their chance at sustained success. right. If they were to go nine and eight and miss the playoffs this year, but you started to feel like the momentum was still building the right direction, they just didn't get all the same breaks they got in 2025. I don't think you would have to hit the panic button to me like, oh my God, the pop-up season and they fell off. I think it would be like, okay, let's see it with our own eyes and see what it looks like and hopefully you get the progress in the areas that you need the progress. The other thing that is important to note here is like this idea that the bears haven't been aggressive. well, they were aggressive last off season. And it's why Joe Tuny will carry a $21.5 million cap hit for 2020. It's why Jonah Jackson will have a $19.5 million cap hit for 2020. It's because you went out and you aggressively overhauled your offensive line in a way that made you more competitive, more quickly than most people thought. And you're just not in a salary cap sport able to do that every single year.

The other thing, you mentioned just a couple of minutes ago. ROI, big TTN acronym here, right? Return on investment. Well, let me read you the six players that the bears have on defense that have cap hits north of $10 million for this season. And I'll read you the list of draft picks that they've taken on day one or day two of the draft in the Ryan Poles era. So we'll start with the cap hits.

Montez Sweat, still your highest paid defensive player, $25 million cap hit. Jalen Johnson, $24.5 million cap hit this year. Dioa Dangbo, $20.5 million cap hit this year. Return on investment. Those players are going to need to produce dividends on what you're investing. Lower than that, Grady Gerard, $18.925 million cap it needs to produce. Kyler Gordon, $12.9 million cap it needs to stay healthy, needs to produce. T.J. Edwards, 10.8 million dollar cap it needs to get healthy, needs to produce.

These are examples of trades, signings, resignings, extensions that the bears were aggressive with. six names there of guys that are going to be in your starting depth chart that have to produce. That's the path to becoming a more regular championship contender. And now really quick, the names of people that they've taken in the first two rounds or first two days of the draft in the Ryan Poles era. Jaquan Bristker no longer here. Gordon, repeat. Zach Pickens, no longer here. Tyreek Stevenson entering a very pivotal year here along with Jervon Dexter, his mate from that 2020-23 draft class.

And then Shemar Turner, who you've mentioned several times, is a guy that we don't know. know much about at this point, but it was a second round pick, and second round picks ultimately have to be major starters for you at some point if they're to be deemed hits. Yeah. I mean, let's see how they use him. It seemed like towards the end of the season. They were using him more as an edge, I should say more before he was injured. You know, Austin Booker still could be something.

So to add them to die out of Dangbo and hopefully Montez Sweat continues as he did, came on strong towards the end of last year. But, you know, save for some sort of major restructuring of some of these contracts that you talked about, Joe Tooney, Jonah Jackson, and some splash that you and I are not foreseeing right now. As we said, I think weeks ago, you are hiring from within. We said at the end of the season, that is how the bears are going to go in the next season. You can't just year by year band-aid the picks, especially this early, into some of those

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