Defensive line was a glaring weakness for the Chicago Bears throughout the 2022 season and general manger Ryan Poles took another step towards improving it for 2023. The Bears signed former Las Vegas Raiders defensive tackle Andrew Billings to a one-year deal on Thursday. It’s their second addition to the line after signing DeMarcus Walker earlier in the week.
Billings was drafted by the Cincinnati Bengals in the fourth round in 2016 but missed his rookie season due to a torn meniscus. He bounced back in 2017 and has had a modest career up to this point. Last year for the Raiders, Billings notched a career-high 39 total tackles (three for a loss), and one sack. He joins the Bears as someone who will rotate in as an interior lineman who will hopefully be a solution when it comes to stopping the run. Here is our initial grade of the move.
Contract details
- 1 year, $3.5 million ($2.4 million guaranteed)
Initial grade: A-
The Bears found themselves a run-stuffing defensive tackle at the age of 27 for pennies on the dollar. Getting just $2.4 million guaranteed, Billings comes as a value player who should immediately improve the team’s run defense, which was the second-worst group in the league last season. He’s not tall for a defensive tackle, coming in at only 6-foot-1, but weighs 311 pounds and can swallow up interior offensive linemen to stop rushing attacks.
Consider the fact Eddie Goldman, who last played for the Bears in 2021, was 27 years old during his final season in the league as the team’s nose tackle. He was a shell of himself and had an abysmal 39.8 grade on PFF and had a cap hit of $7.8 million. Billings, on the other hand, arguably had the best year of his career at the same age with a 76.4 grade on PFF and is getting paid half of that at best. They don’t play the exact same positions due to different defenses, but it’s a fair comparison and a pretty solid deal for the Bears.
Billings likely won’t be much of a factor in the pass rush. Any pressure he gets on the quarterback will be a bonus. He’s here to stop the run and help put the opposing offense in third-and-long situations. The Bears still have work to do on the defensive line, but you have to start somewhere and Billings fills a need.
