Friday's injury report ruled out Chicago Bears defensive lineman Grady Jarrett, who is still nursing a knee injury. The interior lineman has been a consistent source of frustration throughout the first three weeks of the season. Now, this is compounded by the fact that Jarrett is going to miss a very winnable game against the Las Vegas Raiders.
Jarrett was signed to a three-year $42 million deal after the veteran's surprise release in Atlanta. If the first weeks of the season are any indication, perhaps the Falcons were onto something.
Jarrett was signed to be a steadying presence in the middle of the defense, and has been anything but. This is evidenced by a 55.7 PFF grade that ranks far below league average. With this in mind, the Bears are still in solid positioning to pull off a Week 4 win against Pete Carroll's Raiders. It is simply a further indictment of a signing that hasn't aged in Chicago's favor. Luckily, we are still very early in the season, with Jarrett having plenty of time to turn what has been a frustrating start around.
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Despite the rough start, the Bears are going to have to exercise patience with Jarrett when he is able to return to the field. The deal Jarrett signed is cheaper on the roster than as a cut over the next two seasons. The first possible escape from the contract will be in 2027, when the defender has a dead cap hit of $4 million. In comparison, this season would be a $27 million dead cap hit, which exceeds the current cap hit. This is the case in the 2026 season as well, leaving only the hope that the first four weeks of injuries and poor production prove to be an outlier.
Jarrett has been dealing with a knee injury that he suffered in Week 1 and has lingered throughout the past few weeks. Jarrett's status for Sunday also seems that the issue has worsened after playing on it in Week 3.
Missing this game is far from telling the complete story of the season. However, we are nearly a quarter of the way into the NFL schedule, and there is no denying the signing appears to be a complete and utter failure early in the year.
Even in Jarrett's later years with the Falcons, there was still always a handful of elite moments throughout a season. Bears fans have to hope this gear still exists and Jarrett is able to recover from the early-season injury.