Chicago Bears: 5 defensive free agents to stay away from

If there were awards given out to some of the better guys to have around your locker room, Mitch Unrein would absolutely be a recipient. Having spent three of his years as a pro with the Bears, Unrein has kind of been one of those ‘glue guys’ so to speak.

In 2018, though, Unrein is an unrestricted free agent. With the flow of the offseason already showing a movement toward youth, like previously stated, Unrein should not be brought back.

The eight year pro will be 31 years old by the time the 2018 campaign begins, and that is simply not the type of player Pace would bring back with the way things have been looking lately. I can understand the temptation, with him being well-liked around the organization, but the Bears would be wise to let him move on.

Unrein has not been a terrible player by any means. The fact of the matter is, though, he hasn’t been spectacular either. Unrein has never shown me anything that blew me away. He isn’t the fastest. He isn’t the strongest. He is more of a guy that you could rely on to fill in ever so often when your main guys need a rest.

Again, I do not want to knock the guy too hard. He has been a great teammate, but an average player. In seven years, he has only registered 4.5 sacks. As a defensive lineman in today’s NFL, you should be able to put up much better than that.

Not every defensive lineman is capable of double digit sacks year in and year out, but that low of a number in seven seasons is not good enough to reason keeping on your roster. If I’m Pace, I give him a warm send-off and wish him well.