Free Agent Pitch Sees Bears Add Former No. 1 Pick as Edge Rusher

The Chicago Bears are taking their sweet time when it comes to building a pass rush into what should be a significantly improved defense in 2023.

General manager Ryan Poles assured fans earlier in the offseason that the franchise will eventually address the position, one of the most important on the field on either side of the football. The fact that the team hasn’t yet lends itself to one of two notions: that Chicago is looking to make a trade to upgrade on the edge, or that the Bears are holding out to drive down the price of a one- or two-year veteran fix via free agency.

One player who could fill the role on a shorter-term basis is defensive end Jadeveon Clowney, most recently of the Cleveland Browns. Former long-time Minnesota Vikings general manager Rick Spielman, now a contributor to 33rd Team, listed Chicago as the third of three potential landing spots for Clowney in an article published on July 1.

“A long shot, because I don’t know if Clowney fits how they’re building their team, is the Chicago Bears,” Spielman wrote. “Ryan Poles addressed a lot of needs in the draft and free agency, but the one that he didn’t address was a pass rusher.”

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Jadeveon Clowney Inconsistent Across NFL Career, Struggled With Injury in 2022

Clowney has had something of a rollercoaster professional tenure since the Houston Texans selected him with the No. 1 overall pick in the 2014 NFL Draft.

A three-time Pro Bowler, Clowney has tallied 43 sacks across his nine-year career and registered nine or more sacks in three separate campaigns. The most recent of those efforts came with the Browns in 2021, when the defensive end produced 32 quarterback pressures, 19 QB hits and nine sacks, per Pro Football Reference.

He was hampered by injury in 2022, playing in just 12 games and producing only two sacks. Clowney also engaged in a public feud with Cleveland late in the season, taking issue with how the defensive coaching staff prioritized fellow edge rusher Myles Garrett for what Clowney believed was the sole purpose of padding Garrett’s traditional counting statistics.

Clowney’s commentary earned him a benching and sealed a parting of ways between the defensive end and the Browns this offseason.

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Jadeveon Clowney Risky Bet for Bears Absent Second High-End Edge Rusher

Clowney is a natural fit with the Bears’ 4-3 base scheme, rushing the passer from the traditional defensive end spot. However, Chicago is trending younger across the roster and adding a 30-year-old with a recent history of injury to anchor an edge of the defense doesn’t exactly fit with the general direction of the franchise.

Spielman also voiced another concern surrounding Clowney, noting that his production often dips when he doesn’t have another high-level backfield disruptor lining up on the other side of the field.

“[Clowney] is a better player when he has an elite pass rusher opposite of him, as he did with Myles Garrett in Cleveland,” Spielman wrote.

The Bears don’t currently have any such player on the roster. As of July 7, the prospective starters at defensive end are Trevis Gipson and DeMarcus Walker, the latter of whom Chicago signed to a three-year, $21 million deal this offseason.

Walker is the only notable free agent addition who might bolster the Bears pass rush, producing a career-high seven sacks for the Tennessee Titans in 2022. He tallied just 12.5 sacks total across his five previous NFL seasons.

Gipson is entering his fourth season with the Bears in 2023. He produced three sacks last year for a Chicago team that finished dead last in the category with 20 sacks total. Gipson’s second NFL campaign in 2021 was better, though not earth-shattering. He put up seven sacks across 16 games, including nine starts.

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