It wasn’t a massive overhaul, but the Chicago Bears made a few key changes on defense heading into 2025. General manager Ryan Poles and coach Ben Johnson focused much of their effort on the trenches, adding two starters to the defensive line.
Former New Orleans Saints coach Dennis Allen takes over as coordinator, and he’s certain to bring a renewed energy. Allen built the Saints into one of the league’s best defenses during the final years of the Drew Brees era. Now he will try to do the same in Chicago.
Here’s a position-by-position breakdown of Allen’s defense as the team heads into training camp.
Defensive end
Returning: Montez Sweat, Austin Booker, Daniel Hardy, Dominique Robinson, Jamree Kromah
Newcomers: Dayo Odeyingbo, Xavier Carlton, Jereme Robinson
What to know: The Bears totaled 40 sacks last season, but 18 came during the first six games. Sweat, the team’s highest-paid defensive player, had three of the 22 sacks over the final 11 games while dealing with shin and ankle injuries. As a whole, the line fell off after nose tackle Andrew Billings suffered a season-ending pectoral injury midway through the season.
The Bears released veteran defensive end DeMarcus Walker after two seasons with the team. Poles bet on the upside Walker showed during a seven-sack season in 2022 with the Tennessee Titans, but that level of production never materialized in Chicago.
The big addition this offseason was Odeyingbo, who signed a three-year, $48 million contract in free agency. The Bears also return Booker, who saw limited action as a rookie last year, and fourth-year pro Dominique Robinson.
Dayo Odeyingbo (55) works out during the Bears organized team activities in the Walter Payton Center at Halas Hall on May 21, 2025, in Lake Forest. (John J. Kim/Chicago Tribune)
Biggest question: Is Odeyingbo the answer opposite Sweat?
Once again, Poles is betting on upside. Odeyingbo had three sacks last season but recorded eight in 2023. In four seasons with the Indianapolis Colts, he totaled 16½ sacks, although he didn’t emerge as a full-time starter until 2024.
With Sweat as the only real threat on the edge late last season, offensive lines could key on him and send extra blockers and chippers his way. If the Bears can find a viable second threat to pair with Sweat on the other side, it would make it harder for defenses to zero in on him.
Despite his low sack total last season, Odeyingbo recorded a career-best pressure rate (11.9%), according to NFL Next Gen Stats. The Bears are betting on those pressures turning into sacks.
Defensive tackle
Returning: Gervon Dexter, Andrew Billings, Zacch Pickens, Chris Williams, Jonathan Ford
Newcomers: Grady Jarrett, Shemar Turner
What to know: When Billings’ season ended after a Week 9 injury, the line was never the same. The interior affects the edges and vice versa — it’s all connected. The line wasn’t much of a factor late in the season. Losing one player changed the entire equation for the defense.
“Him being out, we could feel that when we played Chicago,” Johnson said in January.
So Poles made several additions at defensive tackle in the hope something like that doesn’t happen again. The Bears signed Jarrett in free agency and drafted Turner out of Texas A&M in the second round. Billings is back and healthy. Dexter, a second-round pick in 2023, is a lock to be a starter.
Jarrett, a 10-year veteran, should make an impact right away. The two-time Pro Bowl selection is a relentless tackle who moves with speed for his size. On top of his physical abilities, he’s a vocal leader who isn’t afraid to say what he thinks.
Bears defensive end Montez Sweat (98) and defensive tackle Gervon Dexter Sr. (99) practice Wednesday, May 28, 2025, at Halas Hall. (Brian Cassella/Chicago Tribune)
Biggest question: Can Dexter reach another level?
Dexter was off to a fantastic start in 2024, totaling four sacks and three tackles for a loss in the first five games. He had just one sack and one tackle for a loss the remainder of the season.
During his first two seasons, Dexter showed bursts of the high-potential tackle the Bears drafted at No. 53 two years ago. He had nine QB hits over the final eight games of his rookie year. Last season he led all Bears defenders with 19 QB hits.
Doing it for a full season is the next challenge.
“It’s time to put it together,” Dexter said in June.
Jarrett raved about Dexter’s work in the weight room and believes he has a high ceiling.
“Year 3 is such a critical time,” Jarrett said. “It’s when you can take that big leap. You’ve played some football, you get more comfortable and now you can know how to apply things and really, really take that big step.”
Linebacker
Returning: Tremaine Edmunds, T.J. Edwards, Amen Ogbongbemiga, Noah Sewell, Carl Jones
Newcomers: Ruben Hyppolite II, Swayze Bozeman, Power Echols
Bears linebacker T.J. Edwards, right, celebrates with linebacker Tremaine Edmunds after stopping the Panthers on third down. (Armando L. Sanchez/Chicago Tribune)
What to know: The starting duo of Edmunds and Edwards will remain in place for the foreseeable future. The Bears signed Edwards to a two-year, $20 million contract extension that will keep him in Chicago through 2027.
Both veterans started all 17 games in 2024. Edwards finished second on the team with 129 tackles (one behind safety Kevin Byard) and added four sacks, a team-high 12 tackles for a loss, one interception, one forced fumble and two fumble recoveries. Edmunds contributed 110 tackles, one interception, one forced fumble, one sack and three tackles for a loss.
The Bears parted ways with local product Jack Sanborn, who followed Matt Eberflus to Dallas. The biggest addition at the position was Hyppolite, a fourth-round pick. Allen wants speedy linebackers, and Hyppolite is exactly that. The Maryland product was not invited to the scouting combine, but his 40-yard dash at his pro day (4.39 seconds) would’ve been the fastest among linebackers at the 2025 combine.
Biggest question: How might the linebacker dynamic change in Allen’s scheme?
Edmunds and Edwards spent the spring working at both the weak-side and middle linebacker spots (Edwards missed some time with a soft-tissue injury). Much like the offense, the Bears defense spent the spring moving players around to see who fits where within the scheme.
“The more that you can do, it adds value to you as a player,” Edmunds said. “And obviously you develop a different sense, like different knowledge of the game. So just being able to see things from a different perspective, being able just to add things to your belt, is always good.”
The roles should crystallize in camp. Over the last two seasons Edmunds has played middle linebacker with Edwards on the weak side. Edwards played middle linebacker with the Philadelphia Eagles, so a change is certainly possible.
Cornerback
Returning: Jaylon Johnson, Tyrique Stevenson, Kyler Gordon, Terell Smith, Josh Blackwell, Ameer Speed
Newcomers: Zah Frazier, Nick McCloud, Shaun Wade, Nahshon Wright, Jeremiah Walker
Bears cornerback Kyler Gordon runs the ball toward the end zone but was later ruled down after recovering a Seahawks fumble during the third quarter on Dec. 26, 2024, at Soldier Field. (Armando L. Sanchez/Chicago Tribune)
What to know: This might be the deepest position group on the roster. All three starters return in Johnson, Stevenson and Gordon, with top backups Smith and Blackwell coming back as well. This group could be the backbone of the defense.
The Bears signed Gordon to a three-year, $40 million extension in April. Allen has high hopes for Gordon, who has played the nickel the last three seasons. Allen hinted he wants Gordon on the field more, suggesting the Bears might give him a try at outside corner or safety.
Stevenson will look for a new start with a new coaching staff. Smith has been a capable backup, but minor injuries have bugged him in each of his first two seasons. The Bears drafted Frazier in the fifth round. He’s a lanky corner who grabbed six interceptions at Texas-San Antonio last year.
Biggest question: Will Jaylon Johnson thrive in this scheme?
Allen’s defenses in New Orleans played a healthy amount of man-to-man coverage. That could lead to Johnson, the team’s top cover corner, shadowing the opponent’s top receiver in certain matchups. In former coach Eberflus’ scheme, Johnson rarely did this. Eberflus preferred to keep his corners on one designated side of the formation, regardless of where the top receiver lined up.
Allen might approach it differently. Longtime Saints cornerback Marshon Lattimore often followed the opponent’s top receiver during his early years in Allen’s scheme. Johnson never has been shy about wanting such responsibilities.
“You lock up the No. 1 guy,” Johnson said during OTAs. “No. 1 on No. 1. For me, that’s what I am looking forward to doing. That’s what I am looking forward to the most. That’s what I train for.”
Safety
Returning: Kevin Byard III, Jaquan Brisker, Jonathan Owens, Elijah Hicks, Tarvarius Moore
Newcomers: Alex Cook, Major Burns, Tysheem Johnson
What to know: The Bears return all four of their top safeties. Byard and Brisker are in line to start, with Owens and Hicks the primary backups.
Byard led the Bears with 130 tackles last season and quickly emerged as a leader, with his teammates voting him a captain in his first season in Chicago. He enters the second season of the two-year, $15 million contract he signed as a free agent in March 2024.
Brisker started 2024 playing his signature physical brand of safety, racking up 40 tackles in five games with an interception and a forced fumble. But a concussion in Week 5 proved to be the end of his season.
The Bears brought in undrafted rookies Burns and Johnson and also signed Cook, who enters his third NFL season.
Bears safety Jaquan Brisker stretches May 28, 2025, during OTAs at Halas Hall. (Brian Cassella/Chicago Tribune)
Biggest question: Can Brisker stay healthy?
Brisker has plenty riding on the season. The 2022 second-round pick heads into the final year of his rookie contract. The 26-year-old needs to prove he can remain healthy if he wants a long-term future in Chicago.
Brisker missed the final 12 games last year, the third consecutive season he missed time with a concussion. Given the severity of the injury, his concussion history might make teams pause before handing out a big contract.
If Brisker does stay healthy, he could be a fun player to watch in Allen’s scheme. He’s capable of playing in tight spaces at the line of scrimmage or deep in coverage.
Brisker has no plans to change his physical style of play.
“I don’t have to prove anything,” he said in June. “When I’m out there, I make plays. I go attack the ball and I come down and hit.”
Specialists
Returning: Cairo Santos (K), Tory Taylor (P), Scott Daly (LS)
Newcomers: Luke Elkin (LS), Jonathan Kim (K)
What to know: The Bears parted ways with longtime long snapper Patrick Scales over the offseason. Scales had been with the team since 2015 and appeared in 99 consecutive regular-season games heading into the 2024 season. But a preseason back injury required surgery and derailed his season before it began. The Bears signed Daly, a Downers Grove native who wound up playing in all 17 games last season.
In March the Bears brought back Daly on a one-year contract. With Daly, Santos and Taylor returning, the Bears have all three members of their field-goal unit back for another year.
The Bears signed Elkin as an undrafted rookie out of Iowa. A Wisconsin native, Elkin was the long snapper for the Hawkeyes when Taylor was setting NCAA punting records. Kim, another undrafted rookie, kicked at North Carolina and Michigan State in college.
Biggest question: Can Santos keep rolling?
With Johnson running the offense, the Bears expect to score a lot more points than they did in 2024. If they do, Santos will be part of the effort. At 89.3% on field goals in 85 games with the Bears, he is the most accurate field-goal kicker in franchise history. Yes, even more accurate than Robbie Gould’s 85.4% career mark in Chicago over 166 games.
Santos is not known for having a big leg. His career long is 55 yards, which can sound like nothing in today’s NFL. But last season he made a career-best eight field goals from 50 yards and beyond in nine attempts. He has been money from shorter distances with the Bears — he never has missed a field-goal attempt from inside 40 yards, although he has missed some extra points.