Starting center Drew Dalman shocked the Chicago Bears and the NFL when he decided to retire at age 27 on Tuesday afternoon. ESPN’s Adam Schefter broke the news as the new league year is set to start in under a week.
After signing a three-year deal in 2025, Dalman played just one season for the Bears. He started in every game and was a key figure on the offensive line. So losing him is a tough way to begin 2026 as now the Bears have a big need at center. More importantly, they lose someone with starting experience for quarterback Caleb Williams.
But Ryan Poles and the Bears’ brass is working hard to move fast in terms of a replacement.
Chicago Bears working on Drew Dalman replacement
The Bears knew about Dalman’s pending retirement earlier this week as news got out to the media on Tuesday. The Bears are now working hard to find a replacement for him and there’s already two names that they are being connected to.
Per Ian Rapoport, the Bears are set to meet with free agent center Tyler Biadasz on a visit. Biadasz was released by the Washington Commanders and now has his first free-agent meeting. But that’s not all.
Albert Breer is reporting that the Bears have sniffed around former Baltimore Ravens pro bowl center Tyler Linderbaum as well. That would be an ideal replacement for the Bears as they need to make sure they can sure up that center spot.
The Bears have sniffed around Tyler Linderbaum and now that makes sense. https://t.co/tqWu6uowe4
— Albert Breer (@AlbertBreer) March 3, 2026
Landing one of these two would be a good replacement for Dalman who is coming off a Pro Bowl season. But still, the Bears now have the same need on the offensive line as they did in the 2025 offseason.
Let’s hope Ryan Poles and his staff can work on figuring this out.
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