Chicago Bears linked to breakout pass rusher amid fan frustration

Chicago Bears fans were hoping that the team would address its pass rush this offseason. After all, the Bears accumulated just 35 sacks in 2025, which ranked near the bottom of the NFL.

Nevertheless, Chicago hasn’t added a single edge rusher over the past several months, much to the chagrin of an aggravated fanbase.

The Bears are apparently confident that Austin Booker will have a breakout campaign in Year 3 after showing some promise with 4.5 sacks in 10 games last season. They must also believe that Dayo Odeyingbo will be able to recover from his Achilles injury and actually produce.

Still, it’s hard not to be concerned with Chicago’s front seven heading into 2026, as Montez Sweat is the only proven pass rusher in the unit.

There are still some veterans the Bears can sign, such as Jadeveon Clowney and Joey Bosa, but they don’t seem all that interested. Instead, they might punt to next offseason, and Jacob Infante has identified an intriguing potential target in that regard: Miami Hurricanes star Damon Wilson II.

Chicago Bears predicted to land Damon Wilson II

Wilson began his collegiate career at Georgia in 2023 and spent two years with the Bulldogs before transferring to Missouri ahead of 2025. During his debut campaign with the Tigers, he racked up 23 tackles, 9.5 tackles for loss, nine sacks and an interception. He then transferred to Miami over the winter.

Because of his impressive inaugural season at Missouri, Wilson is now viewed as one of the top pass rushers in the 2027 NFL Draft class, and Infante has Chicago selecting him with the 16th overall pick next spring.

“It’s safe to say the Chicago Bears’ defensive line will look much different in 2027 than it does this year, and that’s probably a good thing,” Infante wrote. “… Damon Wilson II always had the athletic tools to succeed, but once he transferred from Georgia to Missouri last year, he was able to put those tools to good use. He finished 2025 with 9.0 sacks, demonstrating impressive first-step quickness, flexibility, and pass-rush diversity off the edge. As he moves to Miami for 2026, improving against the run could solidify him as an easy first-round projection.”

As Infante noted, Wilson definitely need to improve his run defense. He is more of a pass-rushing specialist right now, but we’ll see if he can further augment his all-around repertoire with the Hurricanes next season.

And even if he remains mostly a pass rusher, that’s fine for the Bears, because that’s what they need. The question is whether Chicago would select Wilson over someone like Oregon Ducks star Matayo Uiagalelei, who will also be in next year’s class.

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