It didn't come as a huge surprise that ahead of final roster cuts, the Chicago Bears opted to part ways with interior defender Gervon Dexter. The defender clearly wanted a second contract the Bears weren't comfortable giving, and had enough questions that he no longer fit the team's defensive group of young pieces and wasn't consistent enough to be among the handful of key veteran starters. With that said, the trade did spark a level of increased pressure on Grady Jarrett heading into the 2026 season.
Jarrett had an incredibly underwhelming debut season with Chicago and was plagued with knee injuries throughout the entirety of the season. While injuries are a viable explanation for why the regression happened, it only serves to turn up the pressure on the season ahead.
Already, the Bears are in an important year, with a player who will be cut if last year's performance were to repeat itself. Taking Dexter away from the inside only increases the level of responsibility Jarrett is facing and makes the early portion of the 2026 season incredibly important for Jarrett to prove last year was the outlier and set the tone for what can be expected moving forward.
Dexter did a lot for Chicago that didn't show up in the stat sheet due to his size and the ability to create issues on the inside. While the Bears have a trio of pieces they expect to help answer this void, none more important than Jarrett.
Bears Summer Trade Turns up the Heat on Grady Jarrett Ahead of Defining Season
What will be incredibly interesting about the season ahead of Jarrett is the fact it is the veteran's first with real playoff expectations since his first two years in the league. Spending all but last season as a member of the Atlanta Falcons, Jarrett's career has been defined by low expectations and having very little impact when it comes to meaningful football late in the season.
This wasn't due to a lack of talent, but to the roster around him and simply not being offered the stage after the first two years of his career. Jarrett is now facing pressure to step into a more meaningful role for an expected contender and prove himself worthy of the contract Chicago handed out, as well as capable of living up to expectations for one of the few times in his career.
Chicago fans are understandably hopeful that last season's struggles were a product of the knee injuries and not aging or consistent regression. Jarrett at his best is more than capable of helping replace the lost production from Dexter and helping push a young Chicago defense past expectations.
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