Commanders insider has good news about potential Chicago Bears free agent target

Daron Payne should be available for the Chicago Bears in this upcoming free agency class

The Chicago Bears are going to be a big player this NFL offseason with a lot of salary cap to spend and the No. 1 overall pick in the 2023 NFL draft. Chicago has a bunch of needs to fill and has the assets to do so, as they are expected to be very active.

And one player that would be a big upgrade and help fill a void is defensive tackle Daron Payne. The current Washington Commanders tackle is coming off a big year in 2022 and fits the three-technique mold the Bears are looking for on their defense.

The Commanders could franchise tag Payne and not let him test the open market, which would certainly be a disappointment for the Bears. However, one Commanders insider doesn’t believe that will happen and that Payne will hit the free agent market.

JP Finlay spoke on the topic during a segment he hosts on 106.7 The Fan Wednesday. Finlay and his co-host Brian Mitchell had fellow reporter Ben Standig on to talk about the Commanders. In the segment, Finlay believes Payne is as good as gone:

“They are not going to,” Finlay said. “Do you think they are going to?”

“I would say no,” Standig said. “Independent of what Daron Payne did this year, teams just don’t typically pay two defensive tackles that kind of money. They have already paid Jonathan Allen. Then you have the the Montez Sweat and Chase Young extensions looming over the next couple of years. . . You put that all together and you would think that on some level it would make more sense, as good as Payne was, to use some of that money to get a right tackle, a center or a guard or what ever.”

Interesting enough that two insiders don’t believe that the team will retain Payne. That certainly means something.

Of course, they could be wrong and Payne could find himself back with the Commanders but that seems like a long shot.

It’s not guaranteed the Chicago Bears will get Payne but at least their target should be on the free-agent market. And they have plenty of money to land him.