The Chicago Bears led the NFL in turnovers forced in 2025. One of their starting safeties, Kevin Byard, led the league with seven interceptions. He was also named to the Pro Bowl and First Team All-Pro. However, with his contract up after the season, the Bears decided to let him walk in free agency.
Byard ended up signing with the New England Patriots, reuniting with head coach Mike Vrable. He had previously played for Vrable while the two were with the Tennessee Titans.
To replace Byard, Chicago landed on Coby Bryant, who previously played for and won the Super Bowl with the Seattle Seahawks.
Chicago Bears GM Ryan Poles explains why team chose Coby Bryant over Kevin Byard
Sep 25, 2025; Glendale, Arizona, USA; Detailed view of the jersey of Seattle Seahawks safety Coby Bryant (8) against the Arizona Cardinals at State Farm Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Mark J. Rebilas-Imagn Images
Bears general manager Ryan Poles recently spoke to the Chicago media. During his interview, he was asked about the decision to sign Byrant instead of Byard.
“That’s what makes this part of this difficult. You have certain plans; there’s guys that you would like to have back and kind of seeing how the landscape set up and you do your research. When we watched Coby’s tape he was a guy that got us excited.
“Because again, he played our style of ball, he played fast, he played physically. Those are the things that (Dennis Allen) is looking for, that we’re looking for. We thought there was leadership there. He’s young and we had to adapt to that and we had the opportunity to bring a really good player in and that’s the decision that we made.”
Byard signed a one-year $9 million contract in New England. Meanwhile, Bryant signed a three-year $40 million deal with Chicago.
Clearly, not only did the Bears like Bryant’s tape, but they also view him as a longer-term solution at safety than Byard.
Last season, Bryant had four interceptions, seven passes defended, a forced fumble, and 66 tackles while playing with Seattle.
Most importantly, he allowed just a 59.0% completion percentage and 54.0 passer rating when targeted. For a Bears team that ranked near the bottom of the league in passing yards allowed, the addition of Bryant was a no-brainer.
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