3 Free Agents the Bears Should Sign Before NFL Draft
By Cem Yolbulan
Emmanuel Ogbah, DE
The Miami Dolphins released the veteran pass rusher earlier in the offseason to save themselves $13.7 million in salary cap. This was more to do with financial reasons rather than Ogbah's production.
It is still safe to say that Ogbah has not been the same player over the last two years that he was in 2022 when he signed a four-year, $65 million deal with Miami. At that point, he was coming off back-to-back seasons with nine sacks.
With age and injury-related decline, Ogbah only saw 25% of defensive snaps last season with the Dolphins. He was still effective in that limited role, posting 5.5 sacks and 9 QB hits.
With the first wave of free agency now over, there aren't too many high-level edge rushers left on the market. They are usually the first ones to sign lucrative, long-term deals. Therefore, Ogbah is quite possibly the best one still available.
Considering the fact that the Bears still desperately need more pass rushers, Ogbah would be a reasonable choice. Yannick Ngakoue is still a free agent but is unlikely to return. The Bears need another starter to replace him to put on the opposite side of Montez Sweat.
Chicago could target the draft to find that star edge rusher but if they are leaning towards drafting for the offensive side of the ball with their no. 9 overall pick, signing a high-level veteran like Ogbah could be a worthy stopgap solution.