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Bears’ Ideal Pass-Rushing Target Opens Door for Potential Signing

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Free agent defensive end Yannick Ngakoue could still find a home with the Bears for 2023.

The Chicago Bears are still on the hunt for another veteran pass rusher before their veterans report for training camp next Tuesday, July 25, and one of the best scheme fits on the market may have just opened the door for his signing.

Veteran defensive end Yannick Ngakoue had cast doubt over his chances of potentially signing with the Bears earlier in the offseason when he said he wanted to sign a multi-year contract with a “contender” for the 2023 season, but his expectations seem to have loosened based on his recent interview with The Jim Rome Show about free agency.

“Any team in the NFL is an ideal landing spot for me,” Nagkoue said on The Jim Rome Show on July 17. “It’s a blessing to be able to work any job in the NFL. Being able to go and practice with a team, go through walkthroughs, go through film study, it’s a blessing. It doesn’t matter what organization in particular.”

Ngakoue’s words might be music to Chicago’s ears. According to ESPN Chicago’s David Kaplan, the Bears “want to add an edge rusher as soon as possible” with the first camp practice rapidly approaching and are running out of viable options on the market. If Ngakoue is open to joining their defense despite their unlikeliness to contend in 2023, he could be the sack-happy missing piece the Bears’ defensive front desperately needs.

Bears Remain Top Landing Spot for ‘Splashy’ Ngakoue

Even before Ngakoue’s comments provided some hope for fans that want to see him playing in Chicago next season, NFL analysts were continuing to ship the potential connection between him and the Bears heading into his eighth season in the league.

Most recently, Bleacher Report’s Maurice Moton identified five “splashy” signings he believes could happen before the remaining NFL teams begin their camps next week and predicted Ngakoue to sign with the Bears, who he reminded finished with the “second-lowest pressure rate (15.9%) and fewest sacks (20) during the 2022 season.”

“Yannick Ngakoue has at least eight sacks in all seven of his pro seasons,” Moton wrote on July 21. “Though he’s probably going to command north of $10 million per year with well-known agent Drew Rosenhaus as his representative, Chicago can afford to pay him with about $32 million in cap space.”

The Bears, of course, have to make sure any potential agreement with Ngakoue would fall in line with their rebuilding plans under general manager Ryan Poles. The latter did not invest a single draft pick into an edge rusher during the 2023 draft and limited his free agent signings to a pair of affordable run-stoppers in DeMarcus Walker (three years, $21 million) and Rasheem Green (one year, $2.47 million). With two first-round picks in the 2024 draft, Poles might prefer to wait on a high-level investment.

If the Bears believe Ngakoue can be an asset for multiple seasons, though, Moton is right; the Bears could absolutely afford to make him a compelling offer in the range of $10 million per year without creating too large of an issue for them on their salary cap.

Ngakoue has not always been the most reliable of run defenders throughout his career, but it is hard to dispute his consistent success as a sack artist. Not only does he have 27.5 sacks over the past three seasons (with four different teams), but only six players have more sacks than him (65) since he entered the league in 2016, a list that includes elite pass disruptors such as Aaron Donald, TJ Watt and Myles Garrett.

Could Bears Still Explore Trade for A Veteran EDGE?

While the Bears signing Ngakoue would make sense for several reasons, there is always a chance Poles goes about acquiring a veteran edge rusher from the trade market.

The biggest-ticket pass rusher rumored to be available for trade continues to be Chase Young, a former No. 2 overall pick and Defensive Rookie of the Year. The Washington Commanders forced themselves into an early decision window with Young when they declined his fifth-year option for the 2024 season in the spring. It could be that they are simply wanting to make sure Young can bounce back from his injury struggles in 2023 before making a long-term commitment to him, but they have made several high-level investments in their defensive line (Daron Payne and Jonathan Allen) in recent years and might not have the money to pay him with Montez Sweat also set to hit free agency.

The risk and high cost that would come with trading for Young, though, does not quite fit Poles’ modus operandi for rebuilding the Bears’ roster over the past 18 months.

A better, lower-cost trade option could also be New York Jets veteran Bryce Huff. He has collected just 7.5 sacks over his first three seasons in the NFL, but he also posted an excellent pass-rush win rate (25.6%, per Pro Football Focus) in 2022 that hints at his untapped potential. The Bears could also potentially get him for a fourth- or fifth-round pick considering the Jets got no bites from other teams when they placed a second-round restricted free agent tender on Huff earlier in the 2023 offseason.

The Bears’ first training camp practice is less than 72 hours away, so whether it is a trade or a signing (or nothing), the edge-rusher plan should become clear shortly.

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The most prominent pass rusher on the free agent market has opened the door for the Bears to potentially sign him before the start of training camp next week.