The biggest is no doubt All-Pro safety Kevin Byard, who’s one of the team’s two starting safeties, along with Jaquan Brisker, set to hit the open market next week. Byard is coming off one of the best seasons in his 10th year, where he led the NFL in interceptions (7) as part of the league’s best defense at taking the ball away (33 takeaways). Meanwhile, Brisker played an entire 17-game season for the first time since being drafted in the second round in 2022.
With both Byard and Brisker slated to hit free agency, it always felt like it was re-sign one or the other, not both. ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler shined a light on the safety situation for Chicago, where he indicated the team is attempting to re-sign one veteran while letting the other depart in free agency.
“At safety, my sense is the Bears will attempt to re-sign Kevin Byard III over the weekend,” wrote Fowler, “but will let Jaquan Brisker walk.”
That doesn’t come as a surprise considering general manager Ryan Poles has been open about wanting Byard to return in 2026, although he also acknowledged the challenge of filling out the entire safety room this offseason. But with free agency just hours away (at time of publication), we’ll see if Poles will be able to get a deal done or risk allowing Byard to test the free agency waters.