Bears Match Packers Offer Sheet For Kyle Fuller
The Bears had five days to match Green Bay’s offer sheet to cornerback Kyle Fuller but it only needed a few hours. NFL.com’s Ian Rapoport tweets Chicago has matched the offer to keep Fuller in the “Windy City.” 
The contract is a four-year deal worth $56MM with $18MM in guaranteed money. As Rapoport notes, Fuller had already been guaranteed $13MM after the Bears placed the transition tag on him. It only made sense for the Bears to splurge the extra $5MM to keep him with the team and away from its division rival.
Pro Football Talk reports the deal includes a $1MM base salary in 2018, $500,000 in per-game roster bonuses and a $500,000 workout bonus.
Fuller enjoyed a breakout year in 2017, amassing 68 tackles and ranking as PFF’s No. 22 ranked cornerback. That was in stark contrast, however, to his previous three seasons. The former No. 14 overall selection did well as a rookie in 2014 and followed that up with a decent showing in 2015, but his entire 2016 campaign was lost due to a knee injury. The Bears had the option of keeping Fuller under the fifth-year option for just $8.526MM. In hindsight, it’s a move they regret.
With the move, the team is betting on the 2017 version of Fuller being the new norm. With a team undergoing as much offseason change as Chicago, having a little bit of stability and familiarity in the secondary is sure to help the transition.
[RELATED: Bears Depth Chart]
Kevin Pierre-Louis To Visit Bears
After meeting with the Jets on Thursday, linebacker Kevin Pierre-Louis has now also met with the Bears, ESPN’s Field Yates tweets.
Pierre-Louis had essentially been a linebacker in name only until 2017, as special teams had been his primary area of focus. But the former fourth-round pick saw a career-high 25% playtime on defense, managing 25 tackles during that time. The Chiefs picked up KPL in a trade with the Seahawks last July that sent fellow ‘backer D.J. Alexander to Seattle.
Moving for Pierre-Louis would be the latest in a busy Bears offseason. So far, the has signed the likes of Allen Robinson, Taylor Gabriel, Chase Daniel and Aaron Lynch.
Packers Sign Bears’ Kyle Fuller To Offer Sheet
The Packers have signed Bears cornerback Kyle Fuller to an offer sheet, Brad Biggs of the Chicago Tribune tweets. The Bears placed the transition tag on Fuller, so Chicago will have five days to match. The Bears tried to keep Fuller in place with a one-year, $12.9MM placeholder, but they may lose the former first-round pick to a rival.
While the franchise tag entitles the incumbent team to two first-round draft picks in the event of a player leaving, the transition tag grants a club only the right of first refusal. The upside to the transition tag is that it is slightly cheaper. The franchise tag for cornerbacks this year was nearly $15MM.
Last year, Fuller racked up 68 tackles and ranked as PFF’s No. 22 ranked cornerback over notable names like Ronald Darby, Byron Maxwell, Jason McCourty, Richard Sherman. However, it wasn’t exactly smooth sailing over the three previous seasons. The former No. 14 overall selection did well as a rookie in 2014 and followed that up with a decent showing in 2015, but his entire 2016 campaign was lost due to a knee injury. The Bears had the option of keeping Fuller under the fifth-year option for just $8.526MM. In hindsight, it’s a move they regret.
The Packers may lose cornerback/safety Morgan Burnett and Davon House to free agency, so they’re in need of some help in the secondary. Fuller would represent a major upgrade over both and would become the team’s top cornerback with Kevin King guarding the opposition’s No. 2 wide receiver.
An unknown team also attempted to sign Fuller to an offer sheet, Ian Rapoport of NFL.com (on Twitter) hears, but one that was not accepted.
NFC Notes: Lions, Ngata, Giants
Here’s a quick look at the NFC:
- Defensive tackle Haloti Ngata inked a one-year, $2.6MM fully guaranteed deal ($3MM maximum value) with the Eagles this week, but he had the same offer on the table from the Lions, Ian Rapoport of NFL.com hears (video link). He chose the Eagles because he felt they were a better scheme fit for him. In Philadelphia’s two-gap system, Ngata is hoping to get back to his old form as he backs up Fletcher Cox and Timmy Jernigan.
- The Giants restructured linebacker Alec Ogletree‘s contract to prorate the $7MM roster bonus he was due over the remaining four years of his contract, a source tells Dan Duggan of The Athletic (on Twitter). His cap hit will be reduced from $10MM to $4.75MM in 2018, according to ESPN.com’s Jordan Raanan (on Twitter).
- Bears tight end Dion Sims remained on the team’s roster today and now has $4MM of his $6MM base salary fully guaranteed for 2018, as Brad Biggs of the Chicago Tribune (on Twitter) notes.
Seahawks Meet With WR Markus Wheaton
Former Steelers and Bears wide receiver Markus Wheaton is visiting the Seahawks, Ian Rapoport of NFL.com tweets. The Seahawks are on the lookout for pass catchers after losing tight end Jimmy Graham and wide receiver Paul Richardson in free agency.
Last March, Wheaton inked a two-year contract with the Bears worth$11MM with $5MM guaranteed. That deal turned out to be a bust and Chicago released him earlier this week along with quarterback Mike Glennon and cornerback Marcus Cooper, two other free agent signings from 2017 that did not pan out.
Wheaton, 27, has registered just 51 receiving yards in each of the last two seasons. However, he had more than 40 receptions for the Steelers in both 2014 and 2015.
Wheaton could be a low-risk, high-reward pickup for Seattle, and that’s exactly the kind of signing they need as they are working with limited cap space. At the moment, the Seahawks have Doug Baldwin, Tyler Lockett, and the newly acquired Marcus Johnson as their top three receivers, as shown on Roster Resource. Seattle has also shown interest in Cardinals free agent receiver Jaron Brown.
Raiders Sign LS Andrew DePaola
Former Bears long snapper Andrew DePaola signed with the Raiders, agent Sean Stellato tells Ian Rapoport of NFL.com (on Twitter). It’s a four-year deal worth $4.27MM with $875K guaranteed. 
DePaola, 31 in July, spent three seasons with the Buccaneers before hooking on with the Bears last season. The signing leaves the Bears without a long snapper for the moment, but Patrick Scales, who was non-tendered, could be brought back to fill that hole.
DePaola’s deal is uncharacteristically high for a long snapper, but coach Jon Gruden isn’t afraid to go against the grain. Gruden has vowed to “‘throw the game back to 1998” and he took a step in that direction this week by signing fullback Keith Smith to a two-year, $4.2MM deal.
Bears Re-Sign P Pat O’Donnell
The Bears have re-signed punter Pat O’Donnell to a one-year deal, tweets Adam Schefter of ESPN.com. The pact is worth $1.5MM, per Mike Garafolo of NFL.com (Twitter link).
O’Donnell, 26, has spent his entire career in Chicago after being selected in the sixth round of the 2014 draft. Last season, O’Donnell managed 39.7 net yards per punt, which ranked just 24th in the league. As a unit, the Bears ranked second-to-last in Football Outsiders‘ punt rankings by giving up 12.3 points.
Both the Eagles and Giants reportedly expressed interest in O’Donnell before he re-upped with the Bears.
Bears To Sign DE Aaron Lynch
The Bears will sign free agent edge rusher Aaron Lynch to a one-year deal, according to Ian Rapoport of NFL.com (Twitter link).
Lynch spent the first four seasons of his career with the 49ers, with whom he had some overlap with current Chicago defensive coordinator Vic Fangio. His familiarity with the Bears’ scheme is an obvious place, and he could conceivably slot in at either defensive end or linebacker. Either way, Lynch will have one goal: get after opposing quarterbacks.
Lynch admittedly hasn’t been on the field much since 2016 (he’s averaged only 16% playtime over the past two seasons), and the 24-year-old Lynch was reportedly overweight and in danger of getting cut last May. But the former fifth-round pick posted 12.5 sacks over the first two years of his career, and ranked fifth in the NFL with 34 pressures as recently as 2015.
In Chicago, Lynch should have a good shot to rehab his value in advance of 2019 free agency. Although the Bears re-signed veteran outside linebacker Sam Acho to go along with Leonard Floyd on the edge, Acho doesn’t posses Lynch’s upside. With Pernell McPhee now out of the picture, Lynch should be able to soak up snaps as a pass rusher.
Extra Points: Seahawks, Nelson, Browns
The Raiders are in the mix to sign Jordy Nelson, but it’s not a done deal just yet. Ian Rapoport of NFL.com (on Twitter) cautions not to count out the Seahawks in the Nelson chase, given John Schneider‘s history with the wide receiver.
In 2008, the Packers traded back with the Jets in the second round in order to select Nelson. Schneider was a big reason for that deal as he advocated for Nelson in the war room. Now, Schneider is at the helm in Seattle with a very real chance at signing the veteran.
The Saints, reportedly, are also pushing to sign Nelson.
Here’s more from around the NFL:
- Browns GM John Dorsey said he released cornerback Jason McCourty because he wasn’t sure he’d make the roster and, given his veteran status, wanted to give him a chance to catch on with another team (Twitter link via ESPN.com’s Pat McManamon). McCourty had a solid bounce back year with the Browns, so it’s surprising to hear that Dorsey wasn’t sure if McCourty would quality for the 53-man roster. In any event, he figures to have a ripe market.
- Meanwhile, Browns coach Hue Jackson confirmed that Tyrod Taylor is the Browns starting quarterback for 2018. “He’s going to be the starting quarterback. There is no competition,” Jackson said (Twitter link via NFL.com’s James Palmer). The Browns hold the No. 1 and No. 4 overall picks in this year’s draft and one of those selections will almost certainly be used on a QB. Whoever that rookie is, apparently, will be learning from the bench at the outset.
- The Raiders were a close second for Johnathan Joseph before he agreed to re-sign with the Texans, according to Vic Tafur of the San Francisco Chronicle (on Twitter). Joseph re-upped with Houston on Thursday with a two-year deal.
- The Eagles and Giants are showing interest in Bears free agent punter Pat O’Donnell, Adam Schefter of ESPN.com tweets.
Extra Points: Jets, McKinnon, Cardinals, Mathieu, Eagles, Foles, Acho, Bears
The latest from around the NFL:
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Running back Jerick McKinnon nearly joined Teddy Bridgewater with the Jets, according to Ben Volin of The Boston Globe (on Twitter). Ultimately, the 49ers came back with a big offer. The Jets pivoted at that point and instead signed running back Isaiah Crowell.
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The Cardinals were willing to go to about $9MM/year with Tyrann Mathieu before he was cut, Jason La Canfora of CBSSports.com tweets. Other teams believe that he is now looking to top that figure. He may or may not get that kind of coin given his past injuries and a down 2017.
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The Cardinals called the Eagles about acquiring Nick Foles this week, according to Mike Garafolo of NFL.com (on Twitter). However, this took place right around the time of the Sam Bradford signing. With Bradford in the fold at a hefty salary, it’s unlikely that the Cards will go back to that well. Meanwhile, the Eagles seem intent on keeping the Super Bowl MVP.