Bears Expected To Sign Larry Ogunjobi
The Bears have another key piece for their defensive line. Ian Rapoport of NFL Network tweets that the Bears are expected to sign defensive tackle Larry Ogunjobi. Brad Biggs of The Chicago Tribune adds that the contract is worth $40.5MM over three years, with $26.35MM guaranteed (Twitter link). 
After four seasons with the Browns, Ogunjobi signed a one year, $6.2MM deal with the Bengals in March of last year. He was a huge part of their defensive overhaul and went on to record 49 tackles and seven sacks in 16 games. The investment in Ogunjobi – along with the likes of Trey Hendrickson and Chidobe Awuzie – certainly paid off, as the Bengals won the AFC North for the first time since 2015. Unfortunately, his season was brought to a halt with a right foot injury before the divisional round.
Ogunjobi saw a 68% snap share on defense during his time with the Bengals. He finished 2021 with 49 tackles, seven sacks, 12 total tackles for loss, and 16 quarterback hits.
Minor NFL Transactions: 3/11/22
Here are today’s minor roster moves around the NFL:
Chicago Bears
- Assigned from waivers: RB Darrynton Evans
Cincinnati Bengals
- Re-Signed: LB Joe Bachie
Dallas Cowboys
- Released: WR Robert Foster
- Waived: CB Reggie Robinson and RB Ito Smith
Houston Texans
- Re-Signed: QB Jeff Driskel and OL Carson Green
Las Vegas Raiders
- Re-Signed: OT Jackson Barton
New York Giants
- Waived: TE Kaden Smith
- Re-Signed: WR David Sills
Pittsburgh Steelers
- Re-Signed: S Miles Killebrew
San Francisco 49ers
- Re-Signed: LB Demetrius Flannigan-Fowles
Bears To Release NT Eddie Goldman
The Bears continue to dismantle their veteran front seven. Not long after cutting Danny Trevathan, Chicago is moving on from nose tackle Eddie Goldman.
This comes after the team made efforts to trade Goldman, Ian Rapoport of NFL.com tweets. Two years remained on Goldman’s $10.5MM-per-year deal. The move will save the Bears just more than $6MM in cap space.
Goldman, 28, returned to the Bears after opting out of the 2020 season. He started 10 games, upping his total to 73 as a pro. Goldman was a part of each Vic Fangio Bears defense, starting all 16 games for the team’s No. 1-ranked unit in 2018, and retained his job after the acclaimed defensive coordinator’s exit. The Bears gave him an extension just before Week 1 of that season. Because his contract tolled after passing on the 2020 season, Goldman was signed through 2023. He should have an opportunity to catch on elsewhere soon.
Goldman and Trevathan, with the Bears since 2015 and ’16, respectively, are hitting the open market early. Akiem Hicks, with the team since 2016, is set for free agency next week. Khalil Mack, a four-year contributor after a 2018 blockbuster trade, hit the trade block and is headed to the Chargers. With Matt Eberflus and Ryan Poles now in charge, Chicago’s defense will look considerably different in 2022.
Bears To Release Danny Trevathan
The Bears are expected to release Danny Trevathan, according to Brad Biggs of the Chicago Tribune. His release clear upwards of $5MM from this year’s books but those savings would be negated by a $8.9MM dead money charge. 
[RELATED: Bears To Release Cohen]
Trevathan, soon to be 32, has been with the Bears since 2016. A training camp knee injury camp sidelined him to start 2021, but he returned after missing the first four games. His presence alongside Roquan Smith figured to strengthen Chicago’s defense, but he wound up back on IR in November. Appearing mostly as a reserve, Trevathan registered just 19 tackles across five games and appeared in roughly one-quarter of Chicago’s snaps. That’s a big drop from 2020 when Trevathan turned in a full slate, registered 113 stops, and helped bring the Bears to the playoffs.
New Bears GM Ryan Poles has made a point to clear out many of Ryan Pace’s high-priced veterans, so this is on-brand with his overall offseason plan. Already, he’s released longtime running back Tarik Cohen and traded star edge rusher Khalil Mack to the Chargers. That deal netted him a 2022 second-round pick, a 2023 sixth-round selection, and more flexibility to spend in free agency.
Trevathan, meanwhile, should be able to land a new deal elsewhere if he’s healthy and wants to continue playing.
Bears To Cut Tarik Cohen
The Bears are cutting running back Tarik Cohen (Twitter link via Adam Schefter of ESPN.com). Cohen has been unable to pass a physical on his knee injury, so the move will come with an injury designation. 
[RELATED: Latest On Bears’ Grant]
The Bears will save $2.25MM in cap room by releasing Cohen, the sure-handed running back who starred in Chicago’s offense for years. Unfortunately, injuries have taken his career off track — he’s missed 30 straight games since his torn ACL.
Cohen, a 2017 fourth-round pick, spent his entire career in Chicago up until this point. Some of his finest work came in 2018, when he finished with 1,169 yards from scrimmage and eight touchdowns. On top of that, he was a beast in the return game with a league-leading 411 punt return yards. That showing earned him both All-Pro and Pro Bowl nods.
He later started a career-high eleven games in 2019, but he was limited to just 669 all-purpose yards. Now, the Bears’ new regime led by Ryan Poles is moving on from the rest of his three-year, $17.25MM deal.
The Bears’ return game is now led by Jakeem Grant, an impending free agent who is expected to have a “robust” market next week. Grant, acquired by the Bears midway through the season, totaled 309 punt return years between Miami and Chicago.
KR/PR Jakeem Grant Expected To Have “Robust Market”
Jakeem Grant is expected to be a popular name in free agency. The Bears All-Pro return specialist is expected to have a “robust market,” according to Aaron Wilson of ProFootballNetwork.com (via Twitter). Per the reporter, teams are “emphasizing field position and players who are a threat to take it the distance.”
Meanwhile, Grant was mentioned on NFL Network’s Tom Pelissero’s list of free agents “who could get paid more than you think.” Per the reporter, it wouldn’t be shocking if the 29-year-old earns a deal worth more than $5MM per year, which would make him the NFL’s highest-paid return specialist.
Grant was a sixth-round pick by the Dolphins in 2016. He proved to be serviceable on offense during his time in Miami, including a 2020 campaign where he hauled in 36 receptions for 373 yards. He also started earning some league-wide recognition for his special teams prowess during that 2020 season. Grant earned an All-Pro nod after returning 29 punts for 330 yards and one touchdown.
He was acquired by the Bears midway through the 2021 season in exchange for a sixth-round pick. In total, he got into 17 games between Miami and Chicago last year, finishing with 309 punt return yards, including a franchise-record 97-yard punt return against the Packers. Grant also earned his first career Pro Bowl appearance in 2021.
Bears, Chargers Finalizing Khalil Mack Trade
After four seasons in Chicago, Khalil Mack is headed back to California. The Bears and Chargers are nearing a trade for the All-Pro edge defender, Adam Schefter of ESPN.com tweets. The sides have nearly completed this deal, Ian Rapoport of NFL.com tweets.
The Chargers are set to send the Bears second- and sixth-round picks, Rapoport tweets, for the eight-year veteran. The Bears will receive the Chargers’ 2022 second-round pick and their 2023 sixth. This will reunite Mack and Brandon Staley, who coached the Bears’ outside linebackers from 2017-18.
No contract adjustment is coming, per Rapoport, who adds the Chargers will take on the remaining three years and $63.9MM on Mack’s pact (Twitter link). That contract will be more manageable for the Chargers, with no guarantees remaining on the deal.
Mack is coming off an abbreviated season, but the former Raiders top-five pick and NFL Defensive Player of the Year is still regarded as one of the best pass rushers in the game. Mack is set to team with Joey Bosa in Los Angeles. The Chargers rank in the top five in the NFL for cap space, giving them an easier path to absorbing Mack’s contract compared to most teams.
While this is a major move, it comes a year after the Raiders discussed reacquiring Mack from the Bears before the 2021 free agency period. Chicago passed but saw Mack go down with a foot injury midway through last season. Mack underwent surgery and missed nine games. Prior to last season, however, the three-time All-Pro had never missed more than two games in a season.
The 2016 Defensive Player of the Year, Mack went to Chicago in 2018 for a monster haul. Chicago sent Oakland a package headlined by two first-round picks. The Bears gave Mack a then-defender-record $23.5MM-per-year contract. Three seasons remain on that deal. Mack is set to earn $12.1MM in base salary next season. The Bolts, however, now boast the most expensive pass-rushing duo in NFL history. They signed Bosa to a $27MM-AAV extension last year. This move likely will send previous Bosa sidekick Uchenna Nwosu elsewhere; Nwosu is set to hit free agency next week. This is a luxury many teams could not afford, but the Bolts have Justin Herbert tied to a rookie deal until at least 2023.
Mack, 31, played a major role in lifting the Bears to the 2018 NFC North title. He collected his third All-Pro honor that year. The Buffalo alum will head to Los Angeles with four double-digit sack seasons and six Pro Bowls on his resume. This represents another move for one of the highest-profile divisions in recent memory. The Broncos sent the Seahawks two firsts for Russell Wilson this week, giving them a much better shot to contend in the AFC West. The Bolts now have a top-tier edge tandem to throw at Wilson, Patrick Mahomes and Derek Carr.
The Bears still have Robert Quinn, who broke Richard Dent‘s franchise single-season sack record last season, under contract for 2022. But losing Mack is certainly a significant development for the franchise, which recently hired a new coach and GM. This move will douse the Bears in dead money as well, saving them only $6MM in cap space. Chicago will incur a $24MM dead-money charge, part of that coming because the team restructured Mack’s deal in 2019 and in 2021.
RFA/ERFA Tender Decisions: 3/8/22
The deadline for teams to extend tender offers to their restricted free agents and exclusive rights free agents looms next week. We’ll keep tabs on the latest here:
RFAs
Non-tendered:
- Saints: TE Garrett Griffin
ERFAs
Tendered:
- Bears: TE Jesper Horsted, C Sam Mustipher, T Lachavious Simmons
- Dolphins: RB Salvon Ahmed, DB Elijah Campbell
Bears Won’t Tag Allen Robinson
The Bears will allow Allen Robinson to reach free agency without a franchise tag (Twitter link via Courtney Cronin of ESPN.com). The Bears cuffed the wide receiver last year at a rate of $17.9MM, but they’ll pass on the chance to do it again with a 20% bump. 
Poles has told reporters that he wants to “be selective in free agency” — apparently, that means moving on from Robinson, a talented wide receiver that has clashed with team brass throughout the years. His dissatisfaction with Matt Nagy was apparent last year and his production was nowhere near his once stellar work. In 2021, Robinson tallied 38 catches for 410 yards and one touchdown, down from his 1,100-yard seasons in 2019 and 2020.
Now, Robinson has a chance at a fresh start and an opportunity to pick his next quarterback. He’s unlikely to get something in the range of $20MM — the would-be value of his 2022 tag — but he should still be able to land somewhere around $15MM/year on average. Despite his challenging 2021, a three-year, $45MM deal doesn’t seem out of reach for Robinson given his overall track record.
Meanwhile, the rest of the wide receiver market is starting to take shape. The Buccaneers are still working on a long-term deal with Chris Godwin, but they plan to franchise tag him if that doesn’t come to fruition. Meanwhile, the Packers are prepared to do the same for Davante Adams, though we might not know for sure until the 4pm ET/3pm CT deadline today.
Minor NFL Transactions: 3/1/22
Today’s minor transactions around the NFL:
Chicago Bears
- Signed: LB Joe Thomas
Cincinnati Bengals
- Re-signed: CB Jalen Davis
Las Vegas Raiders
- Waived: OL Jeremiah Poutasi
New Orleans Saints
- Re-signed: DT Albert Huggins