Free agent defensive tackle Ricky Jean-Francois informed ESPN’s Josina Anderson that he will visit the Bears on Saturday. If he leaves Chicago without a deal, his previously reported meeting with the Seahawks will take place Sunday (Twitter link).
Jean-Francois just hit the market when the Redskins released him on Wednesday. That came on the heels of a 16-appearance, seven-start season in which he racked up 32 tackles and 1.5 sacks while playing roughly 40 percent of the Redskins’ defensive snaps. Pro Football Focus ranked Jean-Francois’ performance an above-average 45th among 127 qualified interior defensive linemen.
The 30-year-old Jean-Francois remains a competent defender, clearly, and hasn’t missed a game since 2013. An adept run defender, Jean-Francois would help bolster a Chicago defense that finished just 28th in DVOA against opposing ground games last year. While the eight-year veteran indicated Thursday that he’d rather play in a 4-3 alignment than a 3-4 (the Bears utilize the latter), signing with Chicago would reunite him with defensive coordinator Vic Fangio. Jean-Francois previously played under Fangio from 2011-12 in San Francisco.