Chicago Bears general manager Ryan Poles has the most money to spend this offseason. Does he go after Mike McGlinchey and possibly spend big bucks?
While the Kansas City Chiefs and Philadelphia Eagles prepare for the Super Bowl this Sunday, the other teams like the Chicago Bears are already preparing for the new league year. In just over a month the 2023 NFL begins. With that comes the free agency frenzy.
As we all know, the Bears have the highest salary cap space available to use this offseason. They currently have about $98.6 million available to spend. That number will almost certainly go up as general manager Ryan Poles likely makes some cuts.
Despite having a fat wallet with a ton of money, Poles wants to temper expectations. He doesn’t want to go on a wild spending spree. The Bears have many holes to fill. Poles doesn’t want to fall into the trap that previous Chicago Bears general managers did — overspend on a star or two and then ignore the rest of the roster. He wants to build a complete roster that will compete for titles for years to come and not be a one-hit-wonder. This is what he said about the Bears’ situation.
"Everyone’s talking about how much money we have and how we’re just gonna go crazy. ‘We’re gonna be sound, so that we get the right players and we get good value. You make a mistake and say, ‘This is it.’ No, we’re gonna approach it the same and be consistent, so that we make sound decisions."
While Poles will be careful with his money, will he surprise people and make a splash or two? Well, he could. Remember, while he was trying to dump salary to free up as much as possible last season, he made a big signing.
Poles signed Larry Ogunjobi to a 3-year, $40.5 million ($26.5 million guaranteed) deal early on in free agency. However, a failed physical negated the deal.
That signing showed that Poles was willing to make at least one big deal last year. It didn’t work out and he didn’t make another big signing.
Poles could decide to do something similar this year. He could make a free agency splash and sign a big name. Who could it be, however?
Chicago Bears offensive line needs veteran help
One of the units with the biggest need for a major overhaul is the offensive line. The unit has struggled for the better part of a decade. While some place the blame of the team’s offensive woes on coaching, without a proper offensive line the plays cannot be made.
The Chicago Bears’ offensive line has given up 116 total sacks in the past two seasons. While the unit did a good job of run blocking in 2022 (the Bears led the league in rushing and had the most rushing yards in franchise history), its pass blocking was atrocious. It was almost impossible for quarterback Justin Fields to drop back and stay in the pocket and have time to find an open receiver.
If the offense is to succeed and for Fields to develop his passing ability the offensive line has to be better in pass protection.
Poles has some young linemen waiting in the wings. He drafted four offensive linemen last year and still has three of them. One of them, Braxton Jones, became a dependable starter. He may draft at least one other offensive lineman in this draft as well.
The problem is that these young players need more development. In the meantime, the line requires some veteran help.
That veteran help could come from Mike McGlinchey. McGlinchey played his college ball nearby at Notre Dame. He has become one of the most dominant right tackles in the NFL.
In 2022, McGlinchey played on 1,210 snaps. In those snaps, he allowed only six sacks and 36 total pressures. That is a lineman the Chicago Bears offense desperately needs.
Chicago needs a right tackle. Larry Borom struggled there in 2022. Borom could be back but he should compete for one of the guard spots or be a swing lineman. Starting at right tackle shouldn’t be an option for him.
McGlinchey would instantly improve the line. Having Jones on the left side improving more each day and a wall on the right side with McGlinchey the Bears would have great bookend tackles. That would give Fields the confidence to stay in the pocket more and find the open receivers.
Signing McGlinchey would certainly qualify as a splash. McGlinchey will cost a pretty penny to sign. Also, there is still a question as to whether the San Francisco 49ers franchise him and keep him for another season. That, though, would really cost the Niners a lot of money for just one season and it likely increases the risk of him leaving.
Poles would have the money to lure McGlinchey away from San Francisco. He already stated that he would be an idiot not to keep money as a factor in his decision on where to play.
Poles has the opportunity to show he is behind Fields as the quarterback. The “trade Fields” whispers are getting louder. Poles and the coaches have stated that Fields is the one they are going forward with. Signing McGlinchey would be a big step in showing that.