Chicago Bears Linked to 6-time Pro Bowl Impact Player

A temporary fix for the Bears’s defensive line issues may be one free agent signing away in the person of six-time Pro Bowler Calais Campbell, most recently with the Atlanta Falcons.

If Campbell plays this coming season, it’ll be his seventeenth in the NFL with a fifth different team. But, even at 37 years of age, there are many who feel that he could still be an impact player and a key role player, both on the field and in the locker room.

Brad Biggs of the Chicago Tribune recently spoke of a possible Bears-Campbell fit.

Per Biggs:

“I reached out to a veteran personnel executive who spent some time reviewing the Falcons last season to seek his opinion on Campbell, who started all 17 games and was on the field for 63% of the defensive snaps, totaling 17 quarterback hits.

‘I think he’s still got one good year in him if he wants to play,” The executive said. “He’s still a real force at the point of attack, You cannot get that guy’s edge. He’s so long and so strong and he’s (really) stout. Anybody who wants to try to run zone his way is not getting the edge of the defense because of his length and pure stoutness.

‘As a pass rusher, he’s still got power, so when he drops his pads– because of his length he plays at a really high pad level naturally– but when he puts a little bend into his play, because of his power, he cannot be stopped one-on-one. Now, he’s of the age that he cannot bring that every play or every game, but when he does, he’s still got a lot.

‘As a veteran free agent, he’s going to be a great locker-room presence. He would be really good for the mix, really good for the locker room, and in spot situations, bases down, base personnel, he would be a big add. You’d just have to limit his reps. He’d be kind of a rotational rush guy. You wouldn’t want him in there all the time. When it’s on the line, that guy brings it’

…That being said, GM Ryan Poles has been aggressive at times entering his third season, and I wouldn’t rule anything out. I’m sure the Bears have kept tabs on Campbell and other remaining free agents who potentially could bolster the roster when looking ahead to the end of August and cut decisions.”

A Good, but Temporary Fix

This certainly seems like a viable option for a team like the Bears, with a good amount of cap space left and a perceived goal of mixing experienced veterans with young prospects in a “build now, but win now” team model.

Coming into this season, the Bears have done as much as possible to rebuild a struggling offense. They’ll be working with a new starting quarterback– no. 1 selection Caleb Williams– a first-round wide receiver in Rome Odunze. They also brought in wide receiver Keenan Allen via trade with the Los Angeles Chargers as well as free agent running back D’Andre Swift and free agent tight end Gerald Everett. They’ll also be working under the coaching of new offensive coordinator Shane Waldron.

Now it’s time to better address the defense, with whatever time and resources they have left.