Film doesn’t lie: Did Bears connect or whiff with new additions?

NFL free agency is essentially over, so time to dig deep and evaluate the Bears' haul.

This analysis comes with the Film Study Promise, which is to watch several full games against strong opponents, not just the highlights.

Remember, the general NFL rule is what you see is what you get. The Cubs might take a bad pitcher, teach him a new grip, tell him throw more cutters, fewer curveballs, and turn him into a decent reliever.

That's not the case here. Tremaine Edmunds, Dayo Odeyingbo, Nate Davis and DeMarcus Walker were the same guys with their previous teams as they were at Soldier Field.

We won't discuss anyone who has already played for the Bears, that's just common sense. But we will include the center of a significant trade:

C Garrett Bradbury, Patriots

This trait stands out right away: Bradbury is very aware. He'll identify free rushers and provide help when needed. A possible trademark style is blocking multiple defenders on the same play. In the Super Bowl, he recognized a free blitzer to his right and got over to make the play.

His pass protection is solid. I'd give him four negative plays on pass pro in the Super Bowl, but the rest of the Patriots offensive line combined for about 100 negative plays. Bradbury is not great on the move. He'll do fine in duo schemes where he doubles the nose, then slides out to a linebacker. Pulling, screen passes, going out to pick up a linebacker in space are not his strengths, though he did throw an effective lead block on Drake Maye's QB draw touchdown in the AFC title game.

One quick note: Bradbury will look between his legs for the snap call. He's not one of those centers who has one of the guards look back at the QB and slap the center's leg when it's time to snap the ball. Does this matter? No idea. Grade: B-

S Coby Bryant, Seahawks

Here's the reality of being a deep safety on a good defense that is almost always playing zone — Bryant didn't see a ton of actual football action. As an example, when Matthew Stafford threw for 374 yards in the NFC title game, Bryant was credited with one solo tackle and one assist, and was targeted in pass coverage once, on the Rams first touchdown when he got picked by the tight end.

Quick comparison: In pass coverage, Bryant was credited with allowing 23 catches on 39 targets, to go with 66 tackles last season. Now ex-Bear Kevin Byard gave up 33 catches on 52 targets, with 93 tackles.

Maybe one bright side is the Patriots did try to take the top off the defense in the Super Bowl. It never worked because Drake Maye was swarmed by the pass rush, but one time when Bryant was asked to cover Stefon Diggs deep, he stuck with him (the ball never arrived).

So let's call this grade an incomplete, but there's certainly nothing on film to suggest Bryant is an obvious upgrade over Byard. He's just younger. Grade: B

LB Devin Bush, Browns

At 5-11, Bush is smaller than the typical NFL linebacker, but the Bears clearly like his pass coverage. Last year he had the third-best targeted passer rating of any linebacker. He has the speed to run with most tight ends, and the Browns moved him around quite a bit to get him involved in coverage.

That said, he's definitely not much of a thumper in the run game. A partnership with T.J. Edwards or Jack Sanborn could work well. Fun fact: After going five seasons without an interception, Bush had three last year, with a league-best 164 return yards. Grade: B+

DB Cam Lewis, Bills

The biggest question here is how the Bears plan to use him. Lewis started just three games last season, the first happening in Week 9 against Kansas City. Lewis put on a show against the Chiefs. He started at slot corner, guarding everyone from Rashee Rice to Travis Kelce, and gave up just 1 reception for 2 yards. Also, for a couple of series, he dropped back and played safety. The only complaint was he missed a tackle for loss opportunity on Xavier Worthy.

A week later in Miami, Lewis was more of a nickel linebacker, since the Dolphins didn't use many three receiver sets, and piled up 7 tackles. At the very least, Lewis will be a nice improvement from Nick McCloud and C.J. Gardner Johnson if he's the backup nickel.

Could he end up starting at safety? Yeah, probably, depending on how the draft goes. There's plenty to like about Lewis. Good speed, aggressive, plays with enthusiasm. Grade: A

WR Kalif Raymond, Lions

Most Bears fans will have a pretty good idea of what Raymond brings to the table, since he played against them so many times with the Lions. Slippery slot receiver, one of the league's better punt returners, he should be a nice add. Grade: A

DT Neville Gallimore, Colts

The effort stands out on film. Gallimore had 3 sacks last season and on two of them, he chased a scrambling quarterback all the way across the field (Cam Ward and Patrick Mahomes).

Overall, though, Gallimore didn't play much when the Colts were healthy. He wasn't super productive, but did manage more tackles in fewer snaps than Andrew Billings had last year. Grade: C

DT James Lynch, Titans

Lynch saw very limited action with the Titans last fall, but some positives could be found if you looked hard enough. Against the Colts, he showed some speed by chasing down Tyler Warren after a 10-yard gain. But that happened because he turned around and ran away from the line of scrimmage. When moving forward, he rarely was able to disengage from blockers. To be fair, holding your ground is half the battle as a defensive tackle. Grade: C-

DT Kentavius Street, Falcons

Among the new defensive tackles, Street probably has the best chance of becoming a playmaker. He's got a wider base than Lynch and gets off the ball quickly. There was a nice sack last season against Seattle when Street split a double-team and brought down Sam Darnold. In Week 18, he bounced off two offensive linemen before logging a sack against the Saints.

Street missed the first 10 games for the Falcons last year. He saw a decent amount of double-teams when he did play, which could be a sign of respect. Grade: B

OT Jedrick Wills, Browns

These highlights are from the archives, since Wills hasn't played a full game since Oct. 20, 2024 and hasn't been a full-time starter since 2022, due to various injuries. He was the 10th overall draft pick in 2020 out of Alabama, so expectations were once high.

In the last game he played, Wills had a tough assignment against Bengals edge Trey Hendrickson, and a rough day, giving up 2 sacks, plus 2 big QB hits. In other words, he looked like a guy about to go on the injured list.

So compared that game to healthier times, the 2022 season opener. Wills was moving much better back then, but he's not a superaggressive blocker; more of a guy who uses his size to wall off defenders. No telling what he might look like in camp, and it's a long shot to have a big payoff, but Wills is a low-risk addition either way. Grade: C