Chicago Bears linked to $30 million pass rusher to boost Dennis Allen’s defense

The Chicago Bears lived and died by the turnover in 2025.

And, no, not just because the Bears’ season ended on a Caleb Williams interception, in overtime, against the Los Angeles Rams in the NFC Divisional Playoffs. Coordinator Dennis Allen’s defense became takeaway vultures, producing a league-high 33 takeaways as Chicago posted the NFL’s best turniver ratio, at +22.

However, after spending big on the offensive side of the ball last spring, to facilitate quarterback Caleb Williams making major strides in his development, the defense lacked real teeth in the pass rush and saw wildly inconsistent quarterback play, on the way to finishing 29th in total defense.

That asset allocation could be about to change in a big way.

Chicago Bears linked to signing All-Pro edge rusher Trey Hendrickson

Over at Pro Football Focus, NFL analyst Mason Cameron put together a list of the best fits for some of the top defensive players expected to reach free agency, including linking the Bears to All-Pro edge rusher Trey Hendrickson.

“Despite an injury-shortened 2025 campaign,” Cameron writes for PFF. “Hendrickson profiles as one of the most impressive pass rushers on the market this offseason. Across the past three seasons, he ranks in the top five at his position in PFF pass-rush grade on true pass sets (92.5) and stands as one of just six edge rushers with a pass-rush win rate above 20%.”

Hendrickson would check a big box and fill a colossal need along the Bears’ front seven, joining Montez Sweat on the opposite side of the line of scrimmage, forming the kind of pass rush duo capable of legitimately terrorizing the likes of Jordan Love and Jared Goff twice each season in the NFC North.

After playing out last season on a restructured $30 million contract for the Bengals, the Bears would need to have some assurances that Hendrickson’s health checks out, after a hip injury ended his season.

Despite his injuries, Pro Football Focus still gives Hendrickson an elite 89.4 overall grade, as one of the league’s highest-graded players at the position last season.

However, after having posted 17.5 sacks in consecutive seasons from 2023 through 2024, and with four double-digit sack campaigns over the past six seasons, it’s easy to see the value and impact Hendrickson could make on the Bears’ front-seven.

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