5 Bears players next in line to receive a new deal following Kyler Gordon's recent extension (2025)

New broke on Sunday night that everyone in Chicago was anticipating all offseason long. General manager Ryan Poles finally ironed out the extension for slot cornerback Kyler Gordon, reaching a 3-year deal that makes him the highest-paid nickel corner.

That extension was one of the top priorities for the Bears' front office this offseason, even if it took a little longer than expected to finalize.

Regardless, now the front office can turn their full attention to the 2025 NFL Draft, but after that, there's a few more players on the roster who deserve a new deal. Here are five players next in line to sign extensions in Chicago.

The next box to cross off on Ryan Poles' to-do list in terms of in-house extensions has to be left guard Joe Thuney. Trading for the 4-time Super Bowl Champ was a major move by the front office a few weeks back but there's more to be done with his deal.

When the Bears made the trade, they inherited Thuney's contract he signed with the Kansas City Chiefs, which only has one-year remaining in 2025. The Bears already did right by adding more years on Jonah Jackson's deal after making the trade for him and there's mutual interest in getting something done with Thuney as well.

"I’m grateful to be here and I’m pumped to play," Thuney said. "I’ll let the business side of it handle itself. Excited to get on the field with the guys in OTAs and I’m excited to start working. Just looking forward to it."

By locking up Kyler Gordon, Ryan Poles rewarded his first ever draft selection as the Bears general manager. Just a few selections later in the 2022 second-round, Poles' second ever draft pick was safety Jaquan Brisker.

Like Gordon, Brisker became an immediate starter for the Bears defense in the secondary and helped bring a physical element to the unit. What sets Brisker apart is his ability to play all over the field at his position but still has room to grow.

"[Brisker's] a guy that you’ve got to know where he is," Johnson said. "You’ve got to account for him. He likes to play down in the box. He likes to get involved. The one thing that I always thought that we could take advantage of was you could get him to have some bad eyes at times. So that’s the one thing we’ll take about, is to make sure he stays sound and he’s playing disciplined football. But he’s got a great skill set. I think he’s a heck of a football player."

The only thing that complicates getting a deal pushed across the line with Brisker is his injury history. Since being drafted Brisker has suffered three concussions in three years. His latest one in 2024 forced him to miss 12 games. He's since been cleared to return for 2025, but needs to play a lot smarter to keep those concerns down.

There is no one more deserving of a new deal than T.J. Edwards. Even when Ryan Poles and Ian Cunningham brought this guy in, it was an absolute steal.

And two years later, Edwards has more than lived up to the contract he signed with the team as a free agent. Now, paying him is dependent on how Dennis Allen feels about Edwards' fit in the new scheme, but Edwards should stick around for a while.

As it stands, Edwards is entering the final year of his 3-year deal. Paying him ahead of the season is good business and a move Poles should make at some point this summer.

This one is interesting and dependent on a few different factors. Veteran safety Kevin Byard is going into the final year of his 2-year deal signed with the Bears but quickly became a major locker room leader in 2024.

If he's the right fit in Dennis Allen's scheme, and wants to return beyond the 2025 season, the two parties could reach another 1-2 year extension to keep him around in Chicago.

Byard showed in 2024 his play on the field is still high-level and that he still has more left in the gas tank but he'll be 32-years-old going into his 10th NFL season.

This one is a little down the line, but a breakout season in 2025 can push a deal through as soon as next offseason. Right tackle Darnell Wright has made steady improvements since being drafted by the Bears in 2023.

Going into Year 4, he's starting toreceive some high comparisons and a high level of mutual respect from everyone in the building, including from his new head coach.

"He has a lot of similarities to the other guy I played with in Detroit, Penei (Sewell)," Jackson said about Wright. "Just special, pure, raw power. I’m excited to get to work with him, help him get better, let him help me get better. It’s going to be fun."

Wright noted he hopes to live up to those comparisons and it could drive his 2025 season. By comparison, Sewell reached his first All-Pro selection in Year 3 and was rewarded with a four-year, $112 million extension, making him the highest-paid OL at the time, the following spring. Could Wright see such a jump under Johnson this year?