The Chicago Bears had their work cut out for them when it comes to clearing cap space this offseason.

Chicago already made a big move to free up cap space by trading receiver D.J. Moore to the Buffalo Bills. The move gave the Bears $16.5 million in cap space. Before Thursday, Moore’s contract was set to expire in 2030.

Advertisement

The Bears could also free up plenty of space by either trading or releasing D’Andre Swift and Tremaine Edmunds. (Via Over The Cap)

The cap problems the Bears currently have won’t be around for long. The franchise could really do itself some favors in 2027.

If we look ahead to the 2027 offseason, the Bears could free up even more cap space.

Montez Sweat, Grady Jarrett, Jonah Jackson and Dayo Odeyingbo will all be in the final years of their deals with the Bears. If the Bears decide to release all of these players, it would free up around $63.5 million in cap space.

Let’s take a closer look at the pros and cons of these four deals:

Advertisement

Sweat has been consistent since joining the Bears in 2023. He was traded from the Washington Commanders and has finished with at least 5.5 sacks each year he’s been with the Bears.

He broke through the 10-sack barrier in 2025, which has been a problem for Bears pass rushers since the Matt Nagy days. After just having a career year, it would be tough for the Bears to say goodbye to Sweat, but getting rid of his contract would free up $21 milion for the franchise, which may be too good to pass up.

Fans were hoping that they would get more out of Jarrett as a free-agent signing. He joined the Bears last offseason, but didn’t do too hot in 2025.

Advertisement

Jarrett had injury issues last season and played in 14 games with four starts. When he was on the field, he put up 39 total tackles, 1.5 sacks and one TFL. This wasn’t the level of production the franchise expected when they brought in the defensive tackle.

Letting Jarrett go would free up $13.5 million in cap space.

Like Sweat, Jackson has been productive in his time with the Bears. He helped anchor the right side of the offensive line with tackle Darnell Wright.

Jackson was one of the three offensive line additions that General Manager Ryan Poles made last offseason. Jackson was traded from the Los Angeles Rams to the Bears for a 2025 sixth-round pick.

Advertisement

Jackson was being considered for the Pro Bowl after just one season in Chicago, playing in and starting all 17 regular-season games.

The experienced guard would be a tough decision for the Bears. However, Jackson will be 30 at that point, and the $13.5 million he’ll free up may convince the Bears to release or trade him.

The Bears brought in Odeyingbo to help with what has been a struggling pass rush in the last few seasons.

Until 2025, the last time a Bears player finished with 10 or more sacks in a single season was in 2021, with Robert Quinn (18.5).

Odeyingbo came to the Bears in free agency after spending the first four seasons of his NFL career with the Indianapolis Colts. During that time, he had 16.5 sacks, so the move seemed like it would pay off for Chicago.

Advertisement

In 2025, played in eight games before suffering a season-ending Achilles tear. He finished with one sack, 21 total tackles and two TFLs.

After the injury, it was clear that the Bears didn’t have as much depth at edge rusher as they thought. Even though Sweat put up some good numbers, the team finished 22nd in the NFL with 35 sacks.

Getting out of this bad deal seems like a no-brainer for the Bears.

It’s a big if, but if the Bears do get all of these contracts off the books next offseason, they would have plenty of money to spend in free agency. The cap issues may be short-term after all.