Bears have an obvious trade partner to deal Tremaine Edmunds and what they could get in return can influence other offseason plans
A Tremaine Edmunds trade can really help the Chicago Bears going into the rest of the offseason.
Blockbuster trades are starting to go down in the NFL ahead of free agency and the Chicago Bears have still been quiet outside of Tuesday’s stunning news regarding Pro Bowl center Drew Dalman.
After the NFL Combine, it seemed like the Bears had a lot of promising developments on the trade front in the works after multiple players were listed as potential trade candidates before the team can start diving into the rest of the offseason.
A potential trade involving starting linebacker Tremaine Edmunds is what interests me the most to see if the Bears can get something in return for the 27-year-old before having to release him. Right now, there’s an obvious trade partner that makes sense.
New York Giants stand out as an obvious team to watch for a Tremaine Edmunds trade
Over the weekend, ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler reported that Edmunds “has strong trade value” and a “decent chance to be dealt” while mentioning the Titans, Raiders and Giants as potential suitors in the market for a high-end linebacker.
The Raiders are compelling to see if the Bears can throw Edmunds in as a deal sweetener on a blockbuster trade to land Maxx Crosby. If that’s not possible, the Giants stand out as the obvious fit to acquire Edmunds after releasing starting linebacker Bobby Okereke this week.
What the Giants give up to acquire Edmunds will be fascinating. At best, the Bears are getting a high Day 3 selection (fourth or fifth-round) straight up for Edmunds given his 2026 cap hit. The exciting idea would be to see if the Bears could add Kayvon Thibodeaux to the deal and throw in a Day 3 pick of their own to even things out.
Such a move would basically even out the cap hit for the Giants while offloading a player they otherwise would have let walk next offseason. Chicago, meanwhile, frees $15 million by moving Edmunds while landing a young, impact, pass rusher to the defensive line at a much cheaper price than trading for Crosby or signing Trey Hendrickson next week.
In that mock scenario, Chicago can save high-end draft capital and a lot of 2026 cap to go after other positions of need such as center, safety, left tackle, and replacing Edmunds at the linebacker position. Such a deal seems too good to be true for both sides but something they should discuss.
Or, the Bears just cut Edmunds and then trade DJ Moore and a farm of draft picks for an overpriced player in Crosby. To me, it’s an easy decision to make that helps address some short-term and long-term issues. It’s worth giving New York a call and seeing what you can pull off before making some other rash decision.
Chicago Bears News
Bears Mock Offseason 2.0: Chicago lands a new center after Drew Dalman’s retirement and still finds a way to add an impact pass rusher
The offseason plans for the Chicago Bears took a major turn since our last mock offseason exercise.
