Chicago Bears: 5 Free agent defensive ends available who could be good fits

While Chicago Bears General Manager Ryan Poles did a great job of revamping the offense, there are still holes on defense. Here are five defensive ends he should target to help the defense succeed in 2024.

Now that the free agency frenzy and the NFL Draft are in the rearview mirror, we can take a look at the moves the Chicago Bears made to improve the roster. General Manager Ryan Poles made it a priority to overhaul the offense. He turned what was an offense that struggled through most of the past two decades into a high-powered one, at least on paper.

The Chicago Bears now have a ton of weapons and a quarterback who many consider to be a generational talent. It is amazing to see a Bears offense with the likes of elite veterans like D.J. Moore and Keenan Allen. Then it got better as Poles added an elite prospect, Rome Odunze.

Even at tight end, Chicago has Cole Kmet, who is quickly becoming one of the top tight ends in the league, and Gerald Everett, who is a good asset for the passing game. Additionally, they have Pro Bowl running back D’Andre Swift, who can beat defenses with both his running and catching abilities.

With that being said, Poles still needs to fill some holes. Last year, he did a great job of building the defense. After a slow start, the defense put the clamps down on opponents. Poles then made the unit even better by acquiring defensive end Montez Sweat.

While the improvement on defense was great, there is still more to be done. The Chicago Bears need someone alongside Sweat who can attract attention. DeMarcus Walker was not able to make a big enough impact to protect Sweat.

We saw in the regular season finale last year how the Green Bay Packers neutralized Sweat by sending a small village of blockers to slow his path to the quarterback. Without anyone making them pay for it, their quarterback, Jordan Love, was able to torch the Chicago Bears secondary.

This was the same treatment Khalil Mack received when he was in Chicago. The Bears cannot allow what happened to Mack to happen to Sweat. They are in a better position to win today than they were when Mack was there between 2018 and 2021.

Here, then, are five defensive ends whom the Chicago Bears should target to help protect Sweat and improve the pass rush.