Ryan Poles just made the Bears’ offseason exponentially easier with one trade
Fantastic trade by the Bears GM.
When it became known that Chicago Bears general manager Ryan Poles was ready to spend on the interior offensive line this offseason, no one expected a move to come this soon.
But, Tuesday morning, the Bears went out and traded for Jonah Jackson by sending a 2025 sixth-round pick to the Los Angeles Rams. Last season, Jackson played just four games due to a shoulder injury ending his season early. But, he’s a starting-caliber guard when healthy.
The kicker, here, is that Jackson played for Bears head coach Ben Johnson while with the Detroit Lions. So, he knows the scheme. This was clearly a move that came directly from Johnson, himself.
Jackson is a better run blocker than he is pass blocker, but he’s a sufficient starter nonetheless. For Chicago to give up just a sixth-round pick for Jackson was a no-brainer, even if the Bears absorb all of Jackson’s $17.5 million this year, between salary and bonuses.
Jackson’s cap number for 2025 is still just $11.8 million per Over The Cap, which is feasible for Chicago to take on considering they had the league’s third-most cap space ($69 million) before the trade.
Side note: for fans complaining about the contract, Jackson’s salary isn’t guaranteed in 2026. This is a great deal.
The Bears gave themselves more flexibility following the Jonah Jackson trade
Assuming we can pencil in Jackson as one of the Bears’ starters on the interior, this figures to leave Chicago with only two starting spots they need to fill. Whether or not they’d like to improve the left tackle position by replacing Braxton Jones remains to be seen, but he’s a sufficient starter as it is and the Bears might be content between he and Darnell Wright holding down the outside.
The Bears enter free agency with just a handful of big needs: two starting spots on the offensive line and one starting edge rusher. You could argue they need another starting linebacker after allowing Jack Sanborn to walk. One might also argue the Bears could upgrade at the defensive tackle position next to Andrew Billings, but Gervon Dexter is also a fine player there, for now.
