The Bears made a concerted effort to address their center position this offseason, and according to Brad Biggs of The Chicago Tribune, they’re not done yet. 
After seeing their starting center, Drew Dalman, retire at the age of 27, the Bears started their offseason aggressive, getting in the race to sign the top free agent center, Tyler Linderbaum, out of Baltimore. When the price of that transaction grew beyond their sights, Chicago quickly moved on to Plan B: trading for Patriots center Garrett Bradbury.
Bradbury will fill the role well, but he only has one year remaining on his current contract. Because of this, Biggs believes the Bears could be looking to add once more to the center spot, this time through the 2026 NFL Draft. Two weeks ago, Biggs reported that the Bears had sent a large contingent to the pro day at Kansas State. Per Biggs, the team’s focus was on the Wildcats’ center, Sam Hecht.
Hecht is widely viewed as one of the top center prospects in the 2026 NFL Draft, and with the rate that centers usually go in the draft, there’s a chance Chicago could end up getting Hecht with any of their four draft picks in the first two days, anywhere from No. 25 overall to No. 89. With Bradbury already locked in for the year, this would allow Hecht to sit and develop for a year or get some practice at the other interior positions to develop some versatility until taking over the center job in 2027.
The Bears saw their young quarterback, Caleb Williams, take a big step forward in Year 2 and are now looking to build around him, starting with the man snapping him the ball. Bradbury works for the day, but Chicago may have tomorrow in sight as it continues to evaluate the draft prospects at his position.
I’m surprised that haven’t at least re signed Ricky Stromberg to at least have another body on the roster, Even if they do get Hecht or somebody else in the draft. I know they said Newman can probably play C too but I haven’t seen him do it yet. They need some other options there. Still say trading down 25 should be in play here. Maybe others too. They need more picks. With no 5th or 6th they need those picks back because that’s where such guys can be found. Trading Kmet could be an option too. Not sure if Amegedjie is worth a late round flier but add one of their 7ths and it might be worth a 6th. Still some moves that can be made but probably not until draft day itself.