Analysis: The possiblity exists Bears might need to find multiple centers after this season.
It would be a shock in the offseason if the Bears ignore the center position.
They lost potential project Doug Kramer to the Arizona Cardinals when they waived him. Meanwhile, both veteran centers on the team now, Cody Whitehair and Lucas Patrick, are graded by Pro Football Focus near the bottom of the league at their positions.
Both veterans are higher paid players, Whitehair the fourth-highest cap hit this season and Patrick is a free agent after this season who has a bigger average annual total against the cap higher this year than all but four of the centers who are scheduled to be free agents in 2024.
So with center the only position where the Bears seem to have a drastic positional need on the offensive line, it might be best for them to sign a free agent center and also draft one.
Drafting a free agent center can mean waiting at least two years before they develop. Whitehair was phenomenal as a rookie center in 2016 but this doesn’t usually happen with rookies. Kansas City’s Creed Humphrey is the exception to the rule as one who came in and immediately dominated.
They have no second-round pick, so unless they find one in Round 3 who starts right away they’ll be counting on a Day 3 addition to be a starter. It’s unlikely to work, and using a first-round pick on one wouldn’t be wise. According to Mockdraftdatabase.com, the consensus ratings have no centers worthy of selection in Rounds 1 or 2.
Center tends to be a position where greater clarity occurs once the Senior Bowl rolls around. Usually players step forward in the predraft process then.
Considering how long it takes to develop a center, the free agency route might be the best one. There will be centers in free agency and the Bears, with the fourth-most effective cap space available according to Overthecap.com, could easily find someone and pay them.
1. Jason Kelce, Eagles
Is Cody Whitehair an option because of the cost and his age, but if the Bears decided to bring one in who knows what he’s doing while another one develops, they could definitely do worse. His 81.9 Pro Footblal Focus leads the NFL so he’s definitely doing more than answering questions about his brother’s relationship with Taylor Swift.
