Chicago Bears free agency could get interesting in 2018. The team is already projected to have over $51 million in salary cap space when the market goes active March 14th. Expectations are that will grow even more with anticipated cuts still forthcoming such as Mike Glennon and Markus Wheaton among others. Depending on how deep they go, they could have upwards of $90 million to spend.

That’s more than enough to do some serious damage. Of course, that’s assuming GM Ryan Pace is up to the challenge. Thus far in the free agency department, he’s batting 1-for-3. His 2016 class was excellent but 2015 and especially 2017 came up woefully short of expectations. That average may be good for baseball, but it’s lousy when trying to build a football team.

Often in these cases, it might be wise for an organization to stick to their strengths. Not get cute. Is there a particular side of the ball or even a position group the Bears have historically had good fortune with on the free agent market? Yes, they have, and there isn’t any other remotely close to it.

Chicago Bears free agency is rich in defensive line scores

Free agency didn’t become an official thing until the 1990s but the Bears yielded results from it even before that happened. Nowhere was that clearer than at the defensive line position. No other spot on a football roster has provided more bang for the buck. While they had some success at it in the 1970s, it didn’t really begin until 1981 when they signed a foulmouthed kid from Texas named Steve McMichael.

“Mongo” became an instant sensation in the Buddy Ryan “46” defense and one of the best interior pass rushers ever with 92.5 sacks in his Bears career. He was a core member of the fabled 1985 defense. To think the team got him so cheap after New England let him walk. The good fortune didn’t end there though. In 2001 new GM Jerry Angelo scored a major coup when he brought in giant defensive tackle Ted Washington.

With his help, the Bears run defense went from 19th to 2nd in one year. He claimed All-Pro honors his first season and the Bears finished 13-3, winning their first division title in over a decade. Then there was arguably the greatest free agent in franchise history, Julius Peppers. The stud defensive end was a giant scoop in 2010. He went to three Pro Bowls in Chicago and led them to the NFC championship his first season.

This doesn’t even count Akiem Hicks who was brilliant in 2017 and should’ve gone to the Pro Bowl. It’s a fairly strong hit rate for Chicago at this position.

The 2018 free agent class could feature strong defensive linemen

The reason this is brought up is that the 2018 crop of free agents might end up delivering quite a spread of quality defensive linemen. Leading the pack at the moment are Star Lotulelei and Sheldon Richardson. Lotulelei is a quality run stopper who has underrated interior pass rush skill. Meanwhile, Richardson is a pass rush specialist that has played well both in 4-3 and 3-4 fronts.

There is also a strong likelihood that former Pro Bowler Muhammad Wilkerson could end up getting cut by the New York Jets. He had 12 sacks back in 2015 and is still just 28-years old. Anyone of those men would look awfully good next to Hicks and Eddie Goldman up front. Something Pace needs to keep in mind as he prioritizes where he’ll spend his money.

The 2018 Chicago Bears are going to be different. Perhaps wildly different. The old school era of John Fox is over. Matt Nagy is the new head coach. He’s bringing in fresh faces, many of whom have never served on the NFL level before. It’s a much younger and by all accounts a much more forward-thinking group. That may be why GM Ryan Pace made that hire.

That’s all fine and good but it doesn’t aide fans with the bottom line. They want to know the answer to one question. When will the Bears be winning team again? Each passing day the luster of the Urlacher era fades a little further in the rearview mirror. Chicago hasn’t seen a winning season in six years and hasn’t tasted playoff football in eight. Though it’s not nearly as bad as the 14-year drought from 1964 through 1976, nobody wants to challenge that record.

So how far is this team from making a run? That’s hard to say. Changes are likely to happen under the new coaching staff. Then there’s the NFC North itself. Last year proved it’s still one of the strongest, toughest divisions in the league. Getting through it will be a chore. Are the Bears strong enough yet for that? Doubtful. Thus it’s a matter of determining how far away they are.

2018 Chicago Bears likely two steps away from readiness

Sean Wagner-McGough did a tremendous breakdown of Mitch Trubisky recently. He explained how the rookie quarterback displayed qualities of greatness. Qualities that this Bears franchise hasn’t seen in decades. If his progression continues under Nagy, the Bears will likely see their timetables to success accelerate. However, the big roadblock remains. The rest of the roster still needs a lot of work.

“The Bears don’t have one or two holes. They have a Titanic-sized hole at receiver and then some smaller leaks that need patching. This might not take one offseason. It’ll likely take two. But the Bears can take solace in the fact that they already did the hard part. The Bears acquiring a potentially transcendent quarterback is like the Browns finding a way to win a game. It’s not impossible, but it almost never happens. This time, it actually happened. Now, it’s time to give him a supporting cast that can accelerate his development.”

That might not be what fans want to hear, but it’s a fair assessment. The Bears don’t have nearly as many holes in their roster as they did to start 2017 but glaring problems remain. Wide receiver isn’t the only one. Edge rusher and cornerback are threatening to become ones too. Pace has work to do and he may not have enough money or draft picks to cover every problem.

Jaguars offer the best example of what the Bears face

If there is one team that might mirror what Chicago is facing, it’s the Jacksonville Jaguars. GM David Caldwell understands perfectly what Pace is going through. He inherited a depleted and aging roster in 2013 that was going to need a rebuild from top to bottom. Fans hoped for a three-year swing like normal but they didn’t realize how bad the situation actually was. The Jaguars endured four seasons of 4-12, 3-13, 5-11, and 3-13. It was ugly.

Then, finally, after one more strong push in the 2017 off-season, they won the AFC South and reached the AFC championship behind a young and hungry roster sprinkled with able veterans. The hard work paid off and now Jacksonville looks like they aren’t going anywhere in the Super Bowl picture. This is what the Bears are striving for. All they ask is a little more time to put on the finishing touches.