ESPN NFL expert predicts massive free agent deals—will the Chicago Bears get in on the action?

Alan Goldsher | Jan 31, 2025

Is free agent wide receiver Tee Higgins flying to Chicago? / Sam Greene/The Enquirer / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

Cincinnati Bengals wide receiver Tee Higgins and Kansas City Chiefs offensive guard Trey Smith are two of the most prized free agents on the 2025 NFL landscape. Both players would look smashing in a Chicago Bears uniform.

But how would they look on the Chicago Bears’ ledger sheet?

According to ESPN’s Dan Graziano, they’d look really, really expensive.

Teeing it Up

Graziano estimates that Higgins would fetch a four-year deal worth $114 million, with $70 million guaranteed, saying, “It's also possible Higgins could benefit from a multiple-team bidding war and drive that number higher.”

Understandable, as Higgins racked up 911 yards and 10 touchdowns in just 12 games last season…and that was while he was lined up across the field from target-sucker Ja’Marr Chase.

Nailing a Trey

As for Smith, Graziano prices him out at $105 million over five years ($65 million guaranteed), noting that, “Smith's rookie deal is up, and he was a sixth-round pick, so the Chiefs don't hold a fifth-year option on him.”

But he’s an All-Pro, and All-Pro offensive trenchman—especially those in their mid-20s—don’t often hit the market.

Should the Bears Pony Up?

Both players would fill a position of need—Higgins would make for a lovely WR1.5 next to D.J. Moore, while Smith would be the best O-lineman the Bears have had in, well, forever—but they would also eat up a huge chunk of their available $66 million salary cap, thus if GM Ryan Poles wants to ink both, the team’s remaining holes would have to be filled with lower-end players on budget contracts.

On the other hand, Higgins and Smith are elite pieces, and players of that caliber aren’t always readily available.

Barring a meltdown by the Philadelphia Eagles and the Detroit Lions, the Bears likely won’t contend for a Super Bowl next season, so maybe Poles should take a couple of massive swings and seriously address the remaining holes in 2026.