Entering the first season of the Ben Johnson era, the Chicago Bears did everything they could to make sure 2025 was more successful than their 2024 campaign. Joe Thuney, Jonah Jackson, and Drew Dalman were added to the offensive line, and a strong draft class with gems including Colston Loveland, Luther Burden III, and Kyle Monangai helped Chicago complete a turnaround from worst to first in the NFC North. But that doesn’t mean their offseason wasn’t filled with mistakes.
The Bears decided to give T.J. Edwards a two-year, $20 million contract extension last April, and it felt like a sound investment. As the season has moved along, though, Edwards hasn’t lived up to the value of his contract, and Chicago is paying the price for putting their trust in an aging linebacker.
It Took 1 Year for Edwards’s Extension to Become a Massive Bears Mistake
Edwards’s contract didn’t look like a terrible idea at the time the pen hit the paper. Coming over after four seasons with the Philadelphia Eagles, the Wisconsin product was a key member of the Bears’ defense, racking up 284 total tackles, 20 tackles for loss, 6.5 sacks, and four interceptions over his first two seasons.
While Edwards earned a 79.6 overall grade from Pro Football Focus in 2023, there were signs of trouble in 2024. Edwards did well in terms of traditional stats, but his grade dropped to 60.7, and his passer rating when targeted spiked from 89.4 to 112.9. In addition, opposing passers completed 88.9% of their passes in coverage, basically guaranteeing a big play when throwing in his direction.
With that, it would have made sense for Edwards to play out the final year of his three-year, $19.5 million contract signed in 2023 and wish him the best. But the Bears threw that idea in the trash, making Edwards the NFL’s 14th-highest-paid linebacker with an average of $10 million per season, per Over The Cap.
Simply put, the decision has backfired. Edwards dealt with a hamstring injury throughout the season but also broke his hand in a Week 9 win over the Cincinnati Bengals. The injuries have limited him to 568 snaps compared to the 1,054 he played last season, and his coverage has only worsened, dropping his completion rate to 77.1 percent but allowing a 119.7 passer rating with a career-high three touchdowns allowed.
Instead of getting out of the contract, the Bears could be kicking themselves before the extension even begins. Edwards is set to make $10.8 million against the cap in 2026, but the Bears may need to get out of the deal even though it would cost $12.9 million in dead money and incur a $2 million cap penalty before June 1. The Bears could get in the black capwise by designating it as a post-June 1 cut, but would still take on $10.5 million in dead money.
Of course, there’s the trade route if Chicago really wants to get out of the deal. But while that move would cost $4.6 million in dead money and save $6.1 million against the cap, few teams are going to want to sink a similar investment into a player that turns 30 during next year’s training camp.
For all the victories this past offseason, Edwards looks like a whiff, and the Bears will have to deal with the consequences after being overzealous last spring.