Chicago Bears fans may remember last year when the team pulled a pair of surprises when they traded for Jonah Jackson and Joe Thuney right before the start of free agency. It was a puzzling decision at the time. People couldn’t quite understand the urgency on the team’s part. Then the market opened. Aaron Banks, who’d had a decent run in San Francisco, got $19.25 million per year from Green Bay. Will Fries, whose 2024 ended with injuries, still got $17.54 million from Minnesota. Trey Smith signed a $23.5 million per year extension. Tyler Smith got $24 million from Dallas. The guard market had exploded. Suddenly, the trades made way more sense. Even so, fans were baffled when the Bears did it again this year with Garrett Bradbury.
After losing Drew Dalman to retirement, everybody expected general manager Ryan Poles and head coach Ben Johnson to make a push in the center market. Then, just a couple of days before it opened, they sent a future 5th round pick to New England for Bradbury. Most called it a cheap move. They should’ve waited.
In fact, they may have acted on the same reliable information they’d received about the guard market last year. A day later, Connor McGovern, one of the biggest names expected to be available, signed an extension to stay in Buffalo.
Tyler Biadasz had already signed a new deal with the Los Angeles Chargers, taking him out of the picture. That left three-time Pro Bowler Tyler Linderbaum as the only big name left. Based on the smoke coming out of Baltimore, it’s starting to look like he may not reach the market either.
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The Bears once again stayed ahead of the curve with Garrett Bradbury.
If this plays out as many predict, it means the top three centers this year will have been locked up before the Bears ever had a chance to speak with them. Then they would’ve had Lloyd Cushenberry (cut by Titans), Ethan Pocic (turning 32), and Cade Mays (mediocre run blocker) as their best options. Not willing to risk Caleb Williams’ continued development on those options or a rookie, they swung the trade for Bradbury, who has started 105 games and helped the Patriots reach the Super Bowl last season.
While not the biggest or strongest in the league, he is a standout athlete, intelligent, technically proficient, and reliable in every facet of the game. He doesn’t commit many penalties and didn’t allow a sack last season. Experts have insisted Garrett Bradbury is a perfect fit for Johnson’s system. He was the pivot man for three top 10 offenses in Minnesota between 2020 and 2024. Kevin O’Connell runs a scheme not too different from Johnson’s. The fit makes sense.
The Bears’ next goal should be clear.
If they can find a way to plug the hole at left tackle, all of their primary issues on offense will have been resolved. The offensive line is settled. D.J. Moore was traded. All they need is a few fringe moves for depth purposes. That will give Poles free rein to focus all remaining resources, including most of the Bears’ high draft picks, on overhauling the defense. They need help across the board with edge rusher, defensive tackle, linebacker, and safety, all needing at least one new starter.
Garrett Bradbury wasn’t the splash fans wanted. However, it didn’t take long to prove that the Bears knew what they were doing. It became clear that the most desirable centers are unlikely to hit the market. Rather than waiting for a miracle, they chose to seek alternatives. That led them to Bradbury. He isn’t perfect, but he should at least buy them a year to get other areas sorted out. They can spend that time grooming an eventual replacement or try their luck in finding somebody better next year.
