3 Bears That Must Be Re-Signed Immediately This Offseason

2. Teven Jenkins, Offensive Guard

At this point in time, it feels more like Teven Jenkins will be allowed to test NFL Free Agency. And in all reality, you couldn't fault the Bears for letting him do that if they end up watching him sign elsewhere.

As a former second-round pick out of Oklahoma State, you could argue that Jenkins has been a bit of a disappointment up to this point in his NFL career and certainly hasn't been the most "available" player for Chicago to lean on since he got to the league.

Jenkins was once considered a massive NFL draft steal for the Chicago Bears but he is coming off of a career-high with just 14 games played this past season. In the NFL, sometimes your best ability is "availability" and Jenkins hasn't exactly been a model of that.

But the reality facing the Bears is that they might be talking about replacing four of their five starters on the offensive line this offseason. Some Bears fans might be giddy about that possibility while a general manager whose seat is getting hot might not exactly agree.

You're talking about completely rebuilding a unit with what assets you have in one offseason and hoping it works, or you'll likely get fired. At least with Jenkins, you could set the floor at a certain level at the left guard position and replace just three starters on that offensive line.

I'm not sure that's the way the Bears and Ryan Poles are going to think about it, but it could make some sense for them to try and bring Jenkins back on a prove-it deal if he's amenable to the idea.