Who else will be a Chicago Bear in 2012

Who else will be a Chicago Bear in 2012?

By Jason Fryer

So far, the Bears have made a few nice moves this offseason picking up Brandon Marshall, Eric Weems, Jason Campbell, and Michael Bush to go along with resigning Tim Jennings and Kellen Davis. Although I like all of those moves, I still feel the Bears need to make a few more moves before the start of the NFL Draft in about a month.

1. Sign a solid defensive end: Even with Mario Williams signing in Buffalo, there are still a lot of solid defensive ends left on the free agent market. Julius Peppers is a terrific player, but he needs help from the opposite side of the defensive line. A few players the Bears should look into signing include John Abraham (who had 9 1/2 sacks), Dwight Freeney, and KamerionWimbley (whose the youngest of the 3 at 28 years old). If the Bears decided to sign anyone of these three pass rushers, Chicago would possess one of the best front fours in the NFL, and wouldn't have to blitz as much from the secondary. As for the draft, the Bears could add to their depth on the d-line and decide to draft a defensive end in the middle rounds of the draft.

2. Sign a number 2 wide receiver: It seems the Bears have finally found their number one wide receiver (Brandon Marshall), and one of the best slot receivers in the NFL (Earl Bennett), but still don't have a great number 2 wide receiver. There are plenty of capable number 2 wide receivers on the free agent market and some of the possible replacements include free agents Mario Manningham, Reggie Wayne, or former Jay Cutler teammate, Eddie Royal. Again, if the Bears were able to sign any of these three players, the Bears would feature one of the best wide receiver cores in the NFL. If the Bears don't sign one of these players, they will need to make sure they draft at least one wide receiver within the first two rounds of the draft to help complement Marshall and Bennett.

Oakland Raiders running back Michael Bush (29) during the NFL regular season game between the San Diego Chargers and the Oakland Raiders at O.co Coliseum in Oakland, CA.

3. Sign a left tackle: I don't think the Bears feature the greatest offensive-line in the NFL, however, I do feel the line is better than people say it is. If Gabe Carimi proves he's healthy next year, that the Bears would be ok at four of the five offensive line positions. Now with the Bears featuring a solid passing game, Chicago needs to make sure they sign a player that can protect Jay Cutler's blind side. Unfortunately for the Bears, there aren't any elite offensive tackle prospects where the Bears are picking in this years draft class. As for free agency, the Bears have a few options which at the left tackle position and few of these players include: Buffalo's Demetrius Bell (who was hurt for half of last season but still is a solid offensive lineman) along with the Texans Eric Winston, Chargers Marcus McNeill, and Cardinals Levi Brown (who were all released for cap reasons). Signing any of these players would be a significant upgrade to what is currently on the Bears roster.

If the Bears fill all of these holes in free agency, along with upgrading a few other holes in the draft, I feel the Bears can compete with any team in the league and have a chance to return to the Super Bowl.

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