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The Chicago Bears rookie minicamp is behind us and the next step off the offseason program will be the organized team activities (OTAs) later this month.
The Bears announced six new signings on Monday following their rookie minicamp over the weekend, leaving three open spots remaining on the 90-man roster.
Those last three spots should at least be expected to be signed by the time OTAs roll around and many are predicting the Bears still have one more splash remaining on the free agent market following the draft.
The Bears are still heavily connected and linked to some of the top remaining defensive lineman on the market and going after another edge rusher wouldn’t be a bad idea for general manager Ryan Poles.
Chicago's defensive front under head coach Matt Eberflus and defensive coordinator Eric Washington would excel having multiple bodies to rotate in and out of the defensive line who can play at a high level.
The Bears already have three solid players off the edge in Montez Sweat, DeMarcus Walker and 2024 fifth-round pick Austin Booker. However, there's one name in particular on the market who would be the ideal target for the Bears at the position.
As ESPN's Bill Barnwell laid out perfectly on Tuesday morning, the Bears should pursue former Miami Dolphins' pass rusher Emmanuel Ogbah as a post-draft signing.
"Last year, the Bears took a training camp flier on Yannick Ngakoue, but it didn't pan out, as they paid him $10.5 million for a career-low four sacks. Ogbah, 30, should come in at a fraction of that cost. He spent most of last season in a limited role with the Dolphins as he returned from a triceps injury and was buried behind multiple standouts on the depth chart, but he still managed 5.5 sacks and nine knockdowns across just 128 pass-rush opportunities. (That's roughly four games worth of pass rushes for a full-time player such as Maxx Crosby.)" - ESPN's Bill Barnwell
Emmanuel Ogbah has been left for dead in Vic Fangio’s defense. But consider this. The DE has five sacks in less than 200 defensive snaps this season. pic.twitter.com/sioeezHWnI
— Omar Kelly (@OmarKelly) December 4, 2023
Despite mainly playing off the bench for the Dolphins' defense, Ogbah was still a productive pass rusher on the stat sheet. Ogbah joined the Dolphins on a massive deal after being a part of the the Kansas City Chiefs Super Bowl run in 2019 but it was a matter of time until his high cap hit forced him to be cut ahead of free agency.
So far, Ogbah's remained unsigned but that should soon change following the draft and the Bears need to pounce on him.
Ogbah would be the perfect veteran role player to add to the defensive line as a player who can rotate in and out with Booker, allowing the rookie to slowly develop into a more nuanced pass rusher. This would also give the Bears two highly-productive veterans coming off the edge, and could prove to be a bargain addition for Poles.
"Those numbers aren't going to project to All-Pro production over a full workload -- Ogbah is probably best spotted in a situational role at this point of his career -- but the Bears need bodies in their edge rotation," Barnwell explained. "Getting 300 snaps of solid pass-rushing performance from Ogbah for $2 million or so would be a good deal for Poles."
At the end of the day, Ogbah was not a strong fit in Vic Fangio's defensive scheme but he checks all the boxes for the type of edge rusher Eberflus has valued in the past. He would also be a more reliable option than what the Bears hoped Ngakoue would be for the defense in 2023. This just seems like a no brainer decision for Poles to make.
More must-reads:
- NFLPA finalizing proposal for major change to offseason schedule
- Packers' former first-round pick planning to make 'monster leap'
- The 'Most receiving yards in a season' quiz
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