The Chicago Bears have missed out on numerous opportunities to bolster their pass rush this year. They didn’t have the money to go big-game hunting in free agency, and they didn’t use any of their draft picks either. Right now, they’re going into 2026 with the exact same group of edge rushers as last season. What was the definition of insanity again? The point is, it feels like nothing other than a stroke of remarkable good fortune can help the Bears now. So you can imagine the reaction to hearing that veteran edge rusher Josh Sweat isn’t happy in Arizona.

The former Super Bowl champion signed with the Cardinals last season, rejoining his former coach, Jonathan Gannon. They’d worked together in Philadelphia. However, Gannon was subsequently fired after the season, pushing the team towards yet another reset and leaving Sweat in a tough spot. He’s on a bad team now set to play for a coaching staff he doesn’t know. It appears that is not something he’s happy about. Reports out of Arizona indicate he has not been present at Organized Team Activities.

While that doesn’t necessarily mean a holdout is happening, some believe it could be looming.

Josh Sweat is 1000% somebody the Bears should target.

As veteran pass rushers go, he is one of the better ones in the NFL. Since 2021, he has 45 sacks and 91 quarterback hits. That includes 12 sacks last season for an otherwise dismal football team. He just turned 29 years old, so he’s still in the tail end of his prime. His 6’5″, 265 lbs frame meets the size requirements of defensive coordinator Dennis Allen. Most importantly, his contract is affordable. Unlike Maxx Crosby and Trey Hendrickson, Sweat only costs around $16.3 million this season.

He has three years left on his current contract, meaning the Bears would control his rights beyond just one year. All they’d have to do is some restructuring of their books. It is possible to do so without completely mortgaging the future. If ever there was a sensible move that would instantly upgrade the team’s most problematic area, this is the one. Best of all, the cost to get him would likely be cost-effective. Given age and contract, you’re probably looking at a 3rd round pick.

Much hinges on how forceful Sweat will be.

It’s evident the Cardinals aren’t going anywhere this season. They have no quarterback to speak of and are breaking in a new coaching staff. Most consider them heavy favorites to compete for the #1 overall pick next spring. If fans and media can see that, you can bet Josh Sweat sees the same thing. Nobody would want to be part of something like that. Sweat has grown used to winning in his long career. Is he willing to do the things necessary to force a trade out of town? He is taking the typical first step.

As for the Bears, much of this depends on how stubborn they’re going to be. They continue insisting they believe Dayo Odeyingbo and Shemar Turner can be contributors once they return from injuries. Evidence from last season casts serious doubt on that. Austin Booker could be really good if he stays healthy, but that is a dangerous gamble as well. Sweat is a proven NFL commodity and has performed at the highest level. If the Bears can get him for minor draft capital, they have every reason to pull the trigger.

While he may not hold the same media attention as other coaches on the Chicago Bears staff, like Dennis Allen, Al Harris, and Press Taylor, there is no denying the presence of Richard Hightower. Every so often over the past two months, the Bears have made a move that was eventually revealed to have been instigated by the special teams coordinator. It was drafting Keyshaun Elliott in the 5th round. It was signing Jon Rhattigan as a free agent. He has carefully orchestrated some notable moves to upgrade his unit whenever possible.

That trend may continue in the next few days. According to Jordan Schultz, the Bears hosted veteran cornerback Nazeeh Johnson for a visit. A 7th round pick in 2022, he helped the Kansas City Chiefs reach the Super Bowl in three consecutive seasons. His best year came in 2024, when he logged 66 tackles and a sack as a rotational player on defense. However, that isn’t what likely appealed to Hightower. It was the 12 special teams tackles in 243 coverage snaps in that time.

Richard Hightower is always good at moves like this.

The special teams coach has a knack for identifying pieces who would fit well in Chicago. It’s shown for the past few years with guys like Jonathan Owens, Amen Ogbongbemiga, Dylan Cole, Daniel Hardy, and Josh Blackwell. With the third phase in constant flux because of team injuries forcing guys into the lineup on offense or defense, a special teams coordinator must have a sharp eye for players. Hightower isn’t perfect, but he does deserve credit for being particularly capable in that regard.

His influence was felt plenty of times last season. Even as injuries mounted across the roster, the special teams found ways to deliver gigantic season-defining moments. You had Blackwell’s blocked field goal in Las Vegas. There was backup kicker Jake Moody stepping in for the injured Cairo Santos in Washington and booting the Bears to a win. Devin Duvernay delivered a game-altering kick return in Minnesota to set up a winning field goal. Last but not least was the enormous recovered onside kick in the comeback against Green Bay in that epic December showdown.

There are plans for Johnson if the Bears land him.

It is pretty evident that Richard Hightower feels the cornerback has more to offer than what happened in Kansas City. His rookie season in 2022 was easily his best on special teams, with eight tackles. Sadly, he tore his ACL in 2023. By the time he returned in 2024, he was getting more work on defense. There is a strong possibility that Hightower believes the Chiefs should’ve kept him focused on special teams. Johnson looked like he had the makings of becoming a Pro Bowler in that phase.

He is still only 27 years old and healthy by all accounts. Hightower knows he’s worked with Dave Toub, one of the best special teams coordinators in NFL history. So Johnson won’t need an education. It will be about finding a good place for him to fit into the team’s core. After some of the losses they suffered in free agency, that shouldn’t be too much of an issue. The only thing left unanswered is if the Bears can actually sign him. Other teams have interest as well.

Nothing about what the Chicago Bears did this offseason makes sense. Everybody knew the team needed more help with their pass rush. It had been evident for most of last season that the defensive line wasn’t getting enough pressure. Any sensible team would’ve brought in some help. Yet free agency came and went. The draft came and went. Nothing. They didn’t add a single notable edge rusher to the mix. General manager Ryan Poles and head coach Ben Johnson both said the same thing. They were encouraged by how Dayo Odeyingbo and Shemar Turner were coming along before their respective injuries. The team wanted to give them another opportunity. It sounded nice, but anybody with common sense knew it wasn’t true. The truth was it was an all-in gamble on one player: Austin Booker.

The team hasn’t hidden its excitement about the former 5th round pick, even back to when he first arrived last year. They saw an immense talent hiding in an underdeveloped body. Once he filled out his frame and expanded his arsenal of moves, he could be a dynamic player. After a somewhat quiet first season, Booker exploded during the 2025 preseason, dominating every blocker he lined up against. Then, right before the season kicked off, he injured his knee.

Austin Booker Watch was put on hold for two months.

He didn’t return until week nine of the regular season. After so much time off and having to spend most of it recovering, expectations weren’t overly high for his return. Sure enough, his first month back was largely forgettable. In five games, he managed just one sack and nine total pressures. Combined with his rookie season, Booker had played 24 games, managing just 2.5 sacks and 34 pressures. That was nowhere close to what the Bears or fans had hoped for.

That’s okay, though. After all, the Bears had seen encouraging signs from Odeyingbo and Turner, right? The problem is the numbers don’t back that up. Not even a little. Odeyingbo rushed the quarterback 207 times before tearing his Achilles in Cincinnati. He had 10 pressures on the quarterback with only one sack. Turner? He had 34 rushes in limited action. He didn’t register a single pressure.

So again, the question must be asked. What compelled the Bears to ignore edge help after seeing all of that for more than half the season?

It all boils down to December and January.

Through the game in Philadelphia, Booker wasn’t making much of an impact. All of that changed starting in the first matchup against the Green Bay Packers. After getting three pressures that night, everything became dialed in. He dominated Cleveland for two sacks, had a half sack in the rematch against the Packers, and another sack against San Francisco the week after that. In total, Booker had 15 pressures and 3.5 sacks in that five-game stretch to end the regular season. Then he added five more pressures and a QB hit in the two playoff games.

If you look at that five-game snippet and average it out to a full season, you begin to see why the Bears might be willing to gamble on Austin Booker. He would’ve had 12 sacks and 51 quarterback pressures. That was the player we saw in the preseason and the player the team thought they drafted. It is very likely that Poles didn’t want to add a veteran edge rusher because he knew it would take snaps away from Booker.

There is additional data to support the Bears’ decision.

Through the first 12 games of the season, in which Booker did not play or was struggling, the Bears’ defense allowed 24.5 points per game. Over the five-game stretch where he began to rev things up, that dipped to 21.6 points per game. Chicago allowed 250 yards passing or less in four of those five games. The only outlier was that shootout in San Francisco. He may not have had a Micah Parsons or Myles Garrett-type impact, but it was clear his presence was influencing the defense’s performance.

If he can maintain or even improve that level of play, coupled with a bout of good health in the secondary, the Bears could be much better defensively in 2026. Is it somewhat reckless to put all your chips on an unproven player like that? Absolutely. However, it isn’t uncharted territory. Back in 1999 and 2000, the Bears pass rush was struggling. Most expected them to swing big for help in 2001, but they didn’t. Part of the reason was that they liked one of their young guys, Rosevelt Colvin.

He had 10.5 sacks that season, thanks in large part to finally staying healthy. Sound familiar? Maybe Booker can follow the same path.

Terron Armstead carved out an excellent career as a left tackle in the NFL. He was an All-Pro and made five Pro Bowls. Most of his best work came with the New Orleans Saints under the guidance of head coach Sean Payton. By now, most football fans know the name. He was the mastermind behind Drew Brees’s ascent to Hall of Fame quarterback status. He won the Super Bowl in 2009, beating three other Hall of Fame quarterbacks to do so. In his career, he’s made the playoffs 11 times and posted a top-five offense 10 times. So when Armstead compares Chicago Bears head coach Ben Johnson to him, it is pretty high praise.

The former left tackle spoke with Fox Chicago Sports on a variety of topics, including his mentorship of Braxton Jones and his relationship with Bears offensive line coach Dan Roushar. During the interview, it was noted that Johnson tends to treat all his players the same, regardless of status. Nobody gets special treatment. Armstead admitted that this was a character trait Payton had. He didn’t care if it was an undrafted free agent or a star. If you did things the wrong way, you were going to hear about it. That sets a high standard for everybody.

Ben Johnson keeps showing his understanding of football.

While superstars deserve the notoriety and money they get, it doesn’t mean they’re above the team. They must be held accountable just like everybody else. It falls to the head coach to be the one who won’t cater to those egos, always reminding them that no one man wins championships. You often see the greatest head coaches do that. Bill Walsh was notoriously strict with Joe Montana throughout their time together, even as the latter ascended to become one of the greatest ever. Chuck Noll had a roster filled with Hall of Famers in Pittsburgh and treated them like underachieving students.

Ben Johnson doesn’t do this just for the sake of asserting his authority. It is all about getting everybody on the same page and pulling in the same direction. If players sense that certain guys will be treated differently, what incentive do they have to work hard? By treating everybody the same, it crystallizes the message. The team is what matters most. Anybody caught not pulling their weight won’t be given any special treatment because of status. It’s either do your job better or get out.

It took Payton time to get everything in order.

The start of his ascent in the NFL was much the same as Ben Johnson. He took over a lowly and dispirited football team with no sense of direction or identity. An upgraded offense, coupled with some magical moments of good fortune, catapulted the Saints to a 10-6 record, a division title, and all the way to the NFC championship. Sound familiar? That was almost the exact same thing Johnson did last season. It took Payton a few years to get that far again, often struggling to get his defense in order. Once he did, the Saints went the distance.

That is where Johnson has the Bears. He has the offensive pieces in place to be really good for a long time. Players are buying into his vision. If the defense can take a step forward from last season, this team is capable of making a run. They’re starting to believe it. Johnson isn’t taking his foot off the gas. Everybody needs to raise the bar. No cutting corners. No grading on a curve. If he really is like Payton, then big things are ahead.

Kirk Ferentz has become one of the great head coaches in college football history. While he has never won a national championship, the remarkable consistency with which he’s run the Iowa football program since 1999 can’t be overstated. He’s sent many young men to the NFL in that time from all positions. However, over the years, it has become apparent that his true specialty is the offensive line. That is no surprise since he was an offensive line coach in his youth. The list of names he’s developed is glittering: Eric Steinbach, Robert Gallery, Marshal Yanda, Brandon Scherf, Bryan Bulaga, and Tristan Wirfs, among others. Now, Logan Jones is set to join that list.

The Chicago Bears drafted the center in the 2nd round last month, to the surprise of many. Most felt Jones would likely go closer to the 3rd. However, head coach Ben Johnson said the team grew smitten with him early in the draft process. People began wondering what type of player the Bears were getting. Cassie Carlson of Fox 32 News decided to ask the man who’d know best, speaking with Ferentz in an interview.

Surprisingly, the head coach didn’t hesitate to compare Jones to another Iowa legend who is having a stellar NFL career so far. That is new Las Vegas Raiders center, and three-time Pro Bowler, Tyler Linderbaum.

That vote of confidence in Logan Jones is no small thing.

After all, he coached Linderbaum, too. His saying the two players are incredibly similar in makeup is a pretty big deal. It is pretty remarkable how alike the two are in dimensions and styles. Linderbaum was considered undersized but highly athletic when drafted in the 1st round four years ago. What he lacked in power, he made up for with mobility and intelligence. It feels like the only reasons Jones wasn’t taken in a similar range were his shorter arms and his age. He turns 25 years old this year.

Part of why Linderbaum found so much success was landing in Baltimore. The Ravens are a first-class organization that always coaches players well. They put Linderbaum in a situation that fit his game perfectly, and he thrived while helping Lamar Jackson continue dominating. It feels like the same has happened for Jones. Johnson’s offense is tailor-made for his skill set, from the wide-zone running game to the pass protection responsibilities. He could hit the ground running just as fast as Linderbaum did.

The implications of this can’t be overstated.

If Logan Jones lives up to that comparison by any reasonable degree, the Bears will have scored one of the biggest steals of the 2026 draft. It is amazing to think where the offseason started for the team. Drew Dalman, their reigning Pro Bowl center, who they’d signed just last year, had abruptly retired. That left a gaping hole in the middle of the offensive line. Most teams would’ve panicked and flailed about looking for solutions. The Bears, to their credit, pivoted quickly.

First, they traded for Garrett Bradbury as a great short-term solution. Then, after doing serious work ahead of the draft, they scooped up Jones as their potential long-term option. They did all of this without spending too much money or using unnecessary draft capital. Jones has a realistic chance to win the job outright. Coach Johnson said the door is wide open. He’s not a raw prospect. The experience is there. The maturity is there. All he needs is the opportunity to prove Ferentz right.