Da Bears

NFL insider notebook: Maxx Crosby trade buzz grows, plus Kyler Murray's next team and Mike Evans' market Trade interest in Raiders star Maxx Crosby is building with the Bears among teams to watch. Plus the latest NFL buzz on Kyler Murray, Mike Evans, A.J. Brown and more.

From Jonathan Jones:

- “Multiple sources indicate the Chicago Bears are a team to watch in potentially dealing for Crosby.” Dallas Cowboys are “lurking.”

- Plenty around the league are keeping an eye on DJ Moore’s availability. New England & Las Vegas are mentioned as possibilities.

Unfortunately. It’s a major bummer. Was nice to have a pro bowl center for the first time since Olin Kreutz, but can’t blame a guy at that position wanting to presumably protect his long-term health. Throws a wrench into the offseason plans for sure.

2026 NFL mock draft: Jeremiyah Love joins Fernando Mendoza in top 5 after combine

Sharing a gift article here. I’m not positive how this works, if only so many can use the link or if it stays open, but let’s give it a try.

Dane Brugler’s 2-round mock draft. Lots of good info.

He mocked Peter Woods, DT, Clemson to the Bears in the 1st, and AJ Haulcy, S, LSU in the 2nd.

I’m of the same opinion. They finally have a coaching staff that can do the develop part of the draft and develop strategy. I hope they lean into that, spread the resources around.

Brad Biggs thinks it’s more likely than not that DJ Moore will be traded.

Brad Biggs says there are rumors that the Bears are potentially involved in the Maxx Crosby situation, but he’s skeptical of the source of the rumors. He also thinks the Dallas Cowboys are interested in Crosby.

I know PFF grades are subjective, just trying to get an idea of how many starting-quality centers are on the market. The answer is... not many.

Seems plausible that Bears might sign a vet and draft a mid-round rookie to develop, with Dane Brugler saying there's 8 centers in his top-125 prospects.

Free agent centers, age, former team, PFF grades:

- Tyler Linderbaum, 26, Ravens, 80.2
- Connor McGovern, 28, Bills, 70.9
- Tyler Biadasz, 28, Commanders, 70.7 (visiting Bears)
- Luke Fortner, 28, Saints, 66.5
- Cade Mays, 27, Panthers, 61.0

For reference, Dalman is 27, had a 72.6 PFF grade

Salary Cap Implications of Drew Dalman’s Retirement In a pretty stunning move, Bears starting center Drew Dalman has decided to step away from the NFL after five years in the league. Dalman, who is just 27 years old, was signe…

From Over The Cap’s Jason Fitzgerald, a more detailed explanation of the salary cap implications of Drew Dalman’s retirement:

Sources: Bears center Drew Dalman retiring from NFL at age 27 Pro Bowl center Drew Dalman has informed the Bears that he's retiring at age 27 after four seasons with the Atlanta Falcons and one with Chicago, sources told ESPN's Adam Schefter.

Courtney Cronin: Details about the stunning news the Bears received Tuesday when center Drew Dalman informed the team that he is retiring after 5 seasons in the NFL.

What it means for Chicago's OL + salary cap implications ⬇️

I don’t believe so. My understanding is they get cap space + the 2 years left on his deal don’t continue to toll. So if he ever decides to unretire, he’d still have 2 years left on his deal w/ Bears. My googling says it’s not part of the compensatory pick formula though.

Carmen Vitali: Drew’s dad was a player and a coach. He’s seen first-hand life after football and the effects the game can have. If anyone is going to make an informed decision on when it’s time to hang ‘em up, it’s Drew.

Happy for him. Sad for the Bears.

Dane Brugler: Tough loss for Chicago.

This is a sneaky good center draft class. No lock top-60 picks, but I think 3-5 starters will come out of this group in the 3rd-4th round range.

Caleb:

70.7 PFF grade which was 11th/40 centers graded. He's 28 so not too old. Slightly bigger than Dalman at 6'4", 315 (Dalman is 6'3" ~300). From what I can tell, he was cut from Commanders for $ reasons. That's what I got so far.

bsky.app/profile/chic...

Rapoport: The #Bears are hosting free agent center Tyler Biadasz on a visit, source said. The former #Commanders starter was recently released and now is available before the frenzy begins.

Albert Breer: The Bears have sniffed around Tyler Linderbaum and now that makes sense.

Promise this was from Schefter’s actual account:

Schefter: ESPN sources: Bears Pro Bowl center Drew Dalman has informed the team that he is retiring from the NFL at age 27. Dalman left Stanford in 2021, and after four seasons in Atlanta and one in Chicago, he has made the sudden and surprising decision to retire.

I have no clue. I don’t think anyone outside of the building knows what their plans are. I am of the opinion that Ben Johnson has more say than Dennis Allen or Ryan Poles in how the defense is overhauled, and we don’t have a history of knowing what Ben Johnson wants to do. He’s the top dog, though.

Bears are the betting favorites to land Maxx Crosby Will Raiders move their best player?

If you care about betting markets, Bears are +200 on Draftkings to acquire Maxx Crosby. Staying with the Raiders is next closest odds at +350.

Implied probability of +200 odds is 33.33%

Jahdae Walker posted an offseason workout video where he’s wearing his helmet the entire workout and practicing celebrations 😂

(NSFW music) (IG: alldae9)

DJ Moore trade pros and cons: What we heard about the Bears at the NFL combine Talking to league sources during combine week, it became clear that Ben Johnson and Caleb Williams have earned respect around of the NFL.

The combine is the ultimate rumor/gossip mill, and this year, folks around the league had positive things (gasp!) to say about the Bears.

Here's what @danwiederer.bsky.social and I heard about Ben Johnson, Caleb Williams, DJ Moore, the LB situation, Kevin Byard, Darnell Wright and more

I think the theory is his leg wasn’t 100% after breaking it in late ‘24, & missing most of ‘25 offseason didn’t allow him to strengthen it back up. So, maybe in ‘26 his physical capabilities would be improved?

I agree with you though. Seems like trying to thread a needle without spending a ton.

Biggs says he thinks re-signing LT Braxton Jones on a 1-year deal makes sense as a stopgap until Ozzy Trapilo gets back.

Brad Biggs says pretty emphatically that the Bears aren’t trading Gervon Dexter.

Albert Breer’s Takeaways: Heeding the Lessons of the Lions’ 2023 Draft Class NFL scouting combine risers and fallers: LB/DL | DB/TE | QB/RB/WR | OL INDIANAPOLIS — The 2026 NFL combine, my 18th, is now in the books. And we have a little b

Albert Breer says he “leans towards a Maxx Crosby trade happening, and maybe this week.”

Says the return likely won’t be as large as the Micah Parsons deal (two firsts + Kenny Clark).

Mentions Chicago as one of at least seven teams that are keeping tabs on Crosby’s availability.

Ben Johnson at the United Center for the Bucks, Bulls game. Ben met with Billy Donovan, and Scottie Pippen.