Cash, Stash, Or Slash: Tj Edwards

The Chicago Bears will have several contract decisions to make over the next 13 months. The Bears have several veterans from the Matt Eberflus era that will have contracts expiring, and the Bears will have to decide if they want to keep them. There are plenty of younger players from the 2023 and 2024 draft that will have to decide about extensions as their rookie contracts get close to finishing.

We’ve already looked at Darnell Wright’s potential contract; now let’s look at TJ Edwards. Edwards was signed in 2023 and had a great season in Chicago. His 2024 season was solid but a step back from 2023. 2025 also went in the wrong direction and included a significant injury.

It’s 2026, and Edwards is under contract with the Bears through the 2027 season. What should the Bears do with their linebacker?

TJ Edwards: Slash

The Bears need to move on from Edwards as soon as possible.

When Edwards was extended after the 2024 season, it was largely met with applause from Bears fans and media. Some had concerns with Edwards’ age and that his production headed in the wrong direction in 2024, and that this might have been done prematurely. Those concerns certainly played out in 2025, where Edwards was nowhere near the same player he was in 2023.

We’ve now reached 2026; the Bears have signed Devin Bush, brought back D’Marco Jackson, and have drafted linebackers in each of the last two drafts. The Bears are poised to move on from Edwards sooner rather than later.

If Edwards were cut this season, it would do nothing in terms of creating cap space. Cutting him this year would leave the Bears with $10.5 million dead in 2026 and $2.3 million dead in 2027. That certainly doesn’t seem like a sensible plan with their salary cap moving forward.

But if the Bears cut Edwards after the 2026 season, he leaves just $2.3 million in dead cap behind. If the Bears can find a trade partner who wants Edwards before the season, that would get him off the books and get his contract largely off the books as well, however, there’s no reason to think a team would give up any draft compensation for a linebacker on the wrong side of 30 with declining production coming off a major injury and pay himn $8.5 million for the season.

Edwards will almost certainly be on the Bears for the 2026 season, but the odds he’s on the roster when the new league year hits in March of 2027 are about as close to 0% as it can be.