In the midst of NFL cap casualty season, the Chicago Bears may have just had the perfect free agent target hit the market ahead of the start of 2023 free agency.
The Bears are at the doorstep of a potential franchise-altering offseason with the team owning about $96 million in cap space along with the No. 1 overall pick in the 2023 NFL draft, which many expect Chicago to trade away for additional picks and/or players. Before figuring out which rookies might best fit their future, though, the Bears will have the opportunity to be aggressive in free agency and sink significant resources into guys they feel can shore up their biggest positions of concern for next season.
That’s where former Kansas City Chiefs left tackle Orlando Brown Jr. comes in.
Bleacher Report’s Alex Ballentine recently dubbed Brown a “realistic dream” target for the Bears in 2023 free agency after the Chiefs declined to place a franchise tag on the four-time Pro Bowler before the NFL deadline on Tuesday, March 7. The 26-year-old Brown will now hit the open market next week and, as Ballentine notes, could be one of the “biggest fish” out there for the Bears in terms of adding premium talent.
Orlando Brown Jr. Would Give Justin Fields a Stalwart LT
The numbers speak for themselves when it comes Brown’s effectiveness as an NFL offensive tackle. According to Pro Football Focus, he played more than 1,000 snaps in each of his past four seasons as a full-time starting left and has allowed no more than four sacks in each of those campaigns. He was also their fifth-highest-graded pass blocker in 2022 among offensive tackles who played at least 80% of their team’s snaps.
Put all that together with the fact that Brown is also only going to be turning 27 in May and he could be one of the best offensive line talents on the market for a Bears roster that desperately needs to improve the protection for quarterback Justin Fields.
“Brown only allowed four sacks at left tackle last season. From Week 10 on, he had the third-best PFF pass-blocking grade among left tackles. Brown is an earth-mover in the run game and has experience blocking for Lamar Jackson from his time in Baltimore,” Ballentine wrote in March 8 article. “Braxton Jones played really well for a fifth-round rookie last season, but this …read more
Source:: Heavy.com