5 Bears Leaving Chicago in the New Year
It would be a huge understatement to say things did not go as planned for the Bears in 2024. The team entered the year with playoff aspirations after an offseason in which many believed was one of the best in the league. The offense added multiple pieces to set the table for number one overall pick, Caleb Williams. The narrative all offseason was the rookie would be walking into one of the best situations a first-overall pick has ever seen.
In terms of pure roster talent, that argument may have been correct. Coaching, however, was something many overlooked and ultimately ruined this season. Shane Waldron failed the offense to begin the season and was fired after just nine games. The choice to retain Matt Eberflus was questionable after last season and proved to be the wrong decision as he was fired after another meltdown on Thanksgiving. Thomas Brown went from passing game coordinator to head coach in a matter of weeks.
What initially was viewed as the best situation for a rookie quickly turned into one of the worst with the coaching carousel Willams saw this season. He still had many flashes of why he was the number one pick and any coaching candidate should be excited at the opportunity. This roster, however, is still far from perfect and will need to be upgraded and multiple positions going into next season. Let's take a look at five Bears likely on their way out in the New Year.
1. Coleman Shelton - C
Shelton was signed to a one-year deal worth $3M last offseason. He was brought in initially to compete with Ryan Bates for the starting center spot, where the Bears have struggled for years now. Bates battled injuries throughout camp and the start to the season so Shelton ultimately won the spot. Bates was unfortunately never able to get fully healthy this season so there has not been any push to move Shelton out of his spot.
While Pro Football Focus has Shelton ranked as the 12th overall center, any Bears fan that has watched the games can tell you those numbers do not tell the entire story. He has ended too many plays on his backside for the fans to have any confidence in him protecting the future of the franchise up the middle. A young quarterback needs a reliable center to not only help with calling out blocking assignments, but also to do the actual blocking and Shelton just hasn't proved that he can do those things at a high enough level to warrant another contract.
It is very difficult to find a quality center these days, but that should not sway the Bears into bringing back Shelton. Ryan Kelly is set to hit the market if they really want to break the bank, or they can invest heavily at offensive line in the draft which is the hope anyways for most fans.
The Bears will likely be picking top-10, so center may not be the direction to go in Round 1. But they still have Carolina's second round pick as well as their own second rounder so that can be a spot to keep an eye on potential interior linemen.