The Chicago Bears have had an eventful few days, a week before free agency, and the new league year officially begins.
Drew Dalman announced his surprise retirement, and not long afterwards, the Bears traded DJ Moore to the Buffalo Bills. Combined with the release of Tremaine Edmunds, the Bears now have over $44 million in extra cap space to work with.
ESPN's Dan Graziano predicts that the Bears will use that extra cap space on a massive $90 million signing at center in Baltimore Ravens Pro Bowler Tyler Linderbaum.
Bears predicted to sign Tyler Linderbaum to $90M deal
"Tyler Linderbaum, C. Contract projection: Four years, $90 million with $60 million guaranteed," Graziano writes. "Predicted landing spot: Chicago Bears."
Signing Linderbaum to such a massive deal would shatter the previous center contract record held by the Kansas City Chiefs' Creed Humphrey.
On a per-year basis, Humphrey's deal was for $18 million. This Linderbaum contract is for a mammoth $22.5 million per-year.
Signing Linderbaum to such a big deal is a risk, but with Dalman's retirement, and Moore and Edmunds coming off the Bears' books, making such a splash isn't that outlandish.
More: Drew Dalman surprisingly retires at 27 years old after Pro Bowl season
Linderbaum is a three-time Pro Bowler, and since his rookie year in 2022, he's started 66 games for the Ravens. He's a stalwart, and someone the Bears would surely love to have.
While this $90 million contract would be the most for any center in NFL history, and by over $4 million per-year, the Bears need a replacement for Dalman.
They're in a Super Bowl window before Caleb Williams' contract extension. There's no time like the present, and signing Linderbaum to such a huge deal, while risky, is something worth doing from the Bears' perspective.
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