Chicago Bears News: Marcedes Lewis signs with team

The Chicago Bears will be returning to the practice field with two new additions.

On Thursday night, the Bears addressed a major need with the signing of veteran defensive end Yannick Ngakoue. If the Bears are going to have any chance of making the playoff, the team had to address their lack of ability to get to opposing quarterbacks. Ngakoue should be the solution to that problem.

The Bears also made an addition to their offense.

On Friday morning, NFL Network’s Tom Pelissero reported that the Bears have signed veteran tight end Marcedes Lewis to a one-year deal.

The Chicago Bears’ latest signing highlights the transition to a passing offense.

Lewis has spent the past five seasons with the Green Bay Packers and there had been some speculation that he would be one of the players to follow quarterback Aaron Rodgers to the New York Jets.

Interestingly enough, the Bears now employ two tight ends in Lewis and Robert Tonyan that were on the Packers last season. The expectation is that Lewis will slot in as the third tight end in the Bears’ offensive system behind Cole Kmet and Tonyan. Kmet signed a three-year contract extension with the Bears earlier this season.

Lewis’ signing appears to signal a transition for the Bears’ offense as the team has the expectation of moving from the run-centric offense they featured last season to a modern style of offense that emphasizes the passing game.

Lewis and his familiarity with offensive coordinator Luke Getsy’s system should be an added benefit for quarterback Justin Fields. If the Bears are going to find success this season, the team will need Fields to take a step forward as a passing quarterback.

There is no doubt that the Bears’ front office has provided Fields with the most offensive weapons he has had since being drafted by the team in 2021. The onus will be on Fields to perform.