Immediately, as the bell rang for the start of NFL free agency in March, the Bears quickly signed Bills linebacker Tremaine Edmunds and Eagles linebacker T.J. Edwards. The Bears signed Edmunds to a four-year, $72 million deal; they signed to a three-year $19.5 million contract.
Edmunds is the standout of the two. He entered the league at 19 years old with the Bills in the first round of the 2018 NFL draft. He played five seasons in Buffalo, tallying 6.5 sacks and averaging 113 tackles per season. He earned two Pro Bowl nods in 2018 and 2019.
Recently, PFF markedly slotted both Edmunds and Edwards in the top 10 of their 2023-24 linebacker rankings. Edmunds came ninth, Edwards 10th.
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"(Dre) Greenlaw and Edmunds are two of the more athletically gifted linebackers in the league," PFF wrote. "They could always get sideline to sideline, but their athletic ability didn’t translate to good coverage play before 2022, a season in which both took massive leaps in that category.
"Greenlaw went from a 62.9 coverage grade in 2021 to an 82.7 coverage grade in 2022. Edmunds went from a 34.6 coverage grade in 2021 to a 90.7 coverage grade in 2022 with just 7.8 yards per reception allowed and 10 passes defended."
Edmunds will undoubtedly step into a massive role on the Bears' defense. Considering the Bears don't have much of a formidable defensive front, Edmunds and Edwards will be key to the Bears' defensive prowess this season.
Edwards, a Chicagoland native home to Lake Villa, has four years under his belt in the league. He recently helped the Eagles to the Super Bowl, where they lost to the Kansas City Chiefs. Last season, he racked up the seventh-most tackles in the NFL (159).
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Both mark equally vital benchmarks for Poles' tenure as a general manager. Edmunds represents arguably the front office's most significant signing yet. According to PFF, it seems like they hit the nail on the head with each of them.