The rumor mill ahead of the November 10 trade deadline has been churning for weeks, and the Chicago Bears have been front and center for much of it. Yesterday, the Indianapolis Colts made the biggest trade splashes so far, sending guard Quenton Nelson to the Seattle Seahawks and defensive tackle DeForest Buckner to the San Francisco 49ers, and reports were that the Bears checked on both players. While interest in Nelson was likely due diligence, their interest in Buckner was more serious because
of their need on the defensive line.
In ESPN’s latest trade deadline article from Jeremy Fowler (Insider) and Matt Bowen (Xs&Os), they speculate on several players who could be moved along with the best scheme fits. Here are who they see as logical for the Bears.
No player has more buzz to the Bears than Khalil Mack, but the winless Los Angeles Chargers seem content to stand pat. Fowler writes, “Returning to the Bears is a natural fit for the equivalent of a quality Day 3 pick.”
The Arizona Cardinals’ Josh Sweat (6’5″, 265) would give the Bears bookend Sweats up front. The 29-year-old had 12 sacks a season ago and 2 so far this season.
The Bears have been rumored to be in on defensive end Jermaine Johnson II (6’5″, 254) before, and with the Tennessee Titans in rebuild mode, they may be willing to move the 27-year-old.
The Titan who may make the most sense is cornerback Alontae Taylor, who has history with Chicago defensive coordinator Dennis Allen from their time in New Orleans. Taylor hasn’t fit in with the Tennessee defense and has been a healthy scratch the last two games. His contract would require some work to fit in, but “He plays a premium position, and he has the speed to cover receivers on the perimeter or play a disruptive role in the slot,” Bowen writes.
The article also lists other corners and d-linemen potentially on the trade block, which could lead to a very active deadline.
Looking around the league, several other teams could be sellers with defensive players the Bears could covet, including the Philadelphia Eagles, Washington Commanders, New Orleans Saints, Miami Dolphins, and New York Jets.
The Jets have a former Bear Pro Bowler who has yet to play a snap on defense for them, and could be had for a late pick or a pick swap. Cornerback Nahshon Wright seemingly wants to return to Chicago (just look at his Twitter profile pic), and while he was boom-or-bust in coverage in 2025, he’d fill a need for a secondary that’s dealt with injuries all season.
From ESPN’s Rich Cimini, who covers the Jets.
Nahshon Wright tells ESPN that he’s “definitely frustrated” by having no role on defense. Asked if he has requested a trade, he said, “Not formally…(But) I’ve expressed my feelings (to the team)
Sports Illustrated’s Albert Breer believes the Bears are in the defensive tackle market, and he mentions Washington’s Daron Payne and Indianapolis’ Grover Stewart as possibilities. He also drops Mack’s name as a fit in Chicago.
Bears head coach Ben Johnson was asked today how involved he is with general manager Ryan Poles and their trade talks as the deadline looms.
“Well, yeah, there’s a lot going on,” Johnson said. “It’s certainly Ryan’s domain, and yet we have constant dialogue of what this team needs and where we can impact ourselves not just this year but, you know, years in the future as well. So he’s turning over every stone that he possibly can to improve this football team, just like he has ever since I’ve gotten in this building, and I feel really good about our process, and we’ll see what happens. Never know.”
Do you expect any trade deadline additions?
