Perfect Bears Offseason Addition Officially Set to Hit Free Agency

The Chicago Bears are looking to make a few moves this offseason as they try to compete next season in a competitive NFC North. Chicago will likely take former USC star quarterback Caleb Williams with the No. 1 overall pick and potentially move on from Justin Fields.

If that’s the case, the Bears will need to get their rookie quarterback some more weapons at the wide receiver unit, which they did last offseason with D.J. Moore. Moore was the perfect addition to Chicago’s offseason as Fields finally had a No. 1 wide receiver to get the ball to.

However, the Bears cannot go into the 2024 season with Moore, Tyler Scott, and Velus Jones Jr. at wide receiver. Therefore, Bears general manager Ryan Poles should do everything in his power to bring in Tampa Bay Buccaneers wide receiver Mike Evans.

The star wide receiver is scheduled to be an unrestricted free agent in March as both the Bucs and his representation remain far apart on an extension, per Bleacher Report’s Jordan Schultz.

Schultz also reports that the Buccaneers are set to take on $7.4 million in dead money by not getting a deal done on Monday with the veteran receiver.

Evans will be highly sought after in free agency this offseason, as he’s been one of the best receivers in the league since his rookie season in 2014. The 30-year-old wideout has had 1,000 yards or more in 10 straight seasons and scored 94 receiving touchdowns.

Evans is a quarterback’s best friend as he can climb the ladder to make those tough catches inside the red zone and stretch the field. Spotrac projects the star wide receiver’s calculated market value as a four-year, $95.3 million deal ($23.8 million average annual salary). 

That’s a lot of money for a 30-year-old wide receiver, but Evans is worth every penny, and the Bears could sign him as they are projected to have at least $70 million in cap space. Chicago has to re-sign cornerback Jaylon Johnson before signing Evans. But outside of Johnson, the Bears can allocate the necessary cap space to create a dynamic wide receiver duo with Evans and Moore.

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