If the cards fall just right, the Chicago Bears should have an opportunity to acquire one of the top centers in the league during 2025 NFL free agency in a few months.
The Bears have desperately needed a quality starting center on their roster for some time now, having spent the past several seasons cycling through a variety of average-to-below-average options, including Cody Whitehair, Lucas Patrick and Coleman Shelton. And with Shelton — their current starter — playing on an expiring contract in 2024, they will almost certainly have to go back to the well for another new option in 2025.
Fortunately, Atlanta Falcons star Drew Dalman may provide them with a solution.
Windy City Gridiron’s Jacob Infante recently ran a mock of the Bears’ 2025 offseason, examining potential options in both free agency and the NFL draft and making several predictions about what Chicago should do with its ample cap space and draft resources.
One of his top predictions? The Bears will sign Dalman to a three-year, $37 million deal that will make him one of the NFL’s highest-paid players at the position, locking down a high-level starter to help protect quarterback Caleb Williams for the foreseeable future.
“Dalman has topped a PFF grade above 78.0 in three of his four seasons in the NFL,” Infante wrote, a reference to Dalman’s elite grades both as a run-blocker and overall in 2024. “At 26 years old, he has solidified himself as one of the top centers in the league.”
Drew Dalman is an Elite-Caliber Run-Blocking Center
Dalman has been an absolute force for the Falcons’ run game since they drafted him in the fourth round of the 2021 draft, making him a potential free-agent gem for the Bears.
According to Pro Football Focus, Dalman has been one of the best run-blockers over the past three seasons, finishing with the third-best run-blocking PFF grades in both 2023 (90.0) and 2022 (82.3). He has also continued to maintain that reputation again in 2024, currently owning the fourth-best run-blocking grade (89.1) — and fourth-best overall grade (85.3) — among NFL centers through the first 14 weeks of the season.
No doubt, the Bears — who have a bottom-10 run offense in 2024 — could use an asset like Dalman opening gaps and creating space for their talented group of running backs. The big question is: Can Dalman make the necessary improvements as a pass-blocker?
Despite his run-blocking success, Dalman has struggled with pass-blocking at the NFL level. He has allowed two sacks and seven total pressures as a pass-blocking in 2024, which would sound fine if not also for the fact that he has played just 160 pass-blocking snaps due to a high-ankle sprain that cost him eight games for the Falcons after Week 4.
That said, Pro Football Focus recognizes his high-end potential. In the site’s preseason rankings of the top NFL centers for the 2024 season, PFF listed Dalman as its ninth-ranked overall center with a disclaimer that he can become “one of the game’s few elite centers” if he can improve his pass-blocking and become a better all-around blocker.
Sounds like the type of potential Chicago should take a chance on.
Bears Miss Out on Top Potential Center Draft Prospect
There are a few flaws with the possibility of the Bears targeting Dalman. For starters, the Falcons could easily decide he is worth the investment and sign him to a lucrative contract extension that prevents him from testing the waters in free agency. Chicago could also have other free agents to consider at the position, none more notable than former Indianapolis Colts first-round pick and four-time Pro Bowler Ryan Kelly.
In terms of a finding a new center, though, the NFL draft looks like a bad bet in 2025.
The 2025 draft class was already looking relatively weak in terms of interior offensive linemen with better selections of guards than centers. The options at center got even thinner on December 12 when Alabama’s Parker Brailsford — the top center prospect for both PFF and ESPN — announced he would return to school in 2025 instead of declaring for the draft. That leaves slim pickings for teams needing a starting center.
Now, the Bears could still take a chance on one of the remaining prospects in the class. USC’s Jonah Monheim is another enticing center prospect who has previously blocked for Williams; though, 2024 is his first year at center after playing tackle and guard in the past. Another possibility — if he declares — is Ohio State’s Seth McLaughlin, who just received the Rimington Award given to college football’s best center each year.
Ultimately, though, the Bears should have received a wake-up call in 2024 about the flaws with how they have constructed their offensive line over the past three offseasons. And if Ryan Poles — or his potential successor — is listening, then he should know that there can be no half-measures anymore. Time to spend money on veteran linemen.
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