Let’s be clear about what this is before anyone gets excited. There is no Kayvon Thibodeaux trade on the table. No reported offer, no framework, nothing from Chicago’s front office. What exists is a persistent stream of speculation connecting the Bears to the Giants pass rusher, fed by the fact that New York already tried to move him once.
The Giants explored sending Thibodeaux to New Orleans during the draft. Those talks collapsed when the Saints refused to include a future second-round pick. Since then, NFL Network’s Mike Garafolo reported that the Giants have told inquiring teams they have no interest in trading him.
Where Thibodeaux actually stands
He is 25 and was the fifth overall pick in 2022. New York exercised his fifth-year option, which put him on a fully guaranteed salary north of $14 million for 2026 and makes this his contract year with no extension in sight.
The production has moved the wrong direction. Thibodeaux had 11.5 sacks in 2023, then 5.5 in an injury-shortened 2024, then 2.5 in an even shorter 2025. That is 23.5 sacks across four seasons for a top-five pick.
The bigger issue is that the Giants keep drafting in front of him. Abdul Carter went third overall in 2025. Arvell Reese arrived this spring. A former top-five pick now sits roughly third in his own position room, on an expiring deal, for a team that has not stopped stacking rushers.
Why Chicago keeps coming up
The Bears won their opener 59-37 over Carolina, and that score tells you everything. Ben Johnson’s offense is a problem for everybody. Dennis Allen’s defense surrendered 37 points and 478 yards in the same game.
Chicago generated 22 pressures on 43 dropbacks but converted only two sacks, from Montez Sweat and Kentavius Street. Dayo Odeyingbo and Sweat led the way with five pressures each. Pressure without finishing is the exact profile of a team that needs one more legitimate rusher opposite its best one.
Thibodeaux fits the physical profile Allen covets, he is young enough to matter past this season, and he is the rare available edge who was once considered a franchise cornerstone.
So should Chicago do it?
Only at a rental price. A late Day 2 or Day 3 pick for a half-season look at a 25-year-old rusher on an expiring deal is a defensible swing for a team trying to win now with an obvious hole.
Anything approaching a straight second-round pick is a mistake, and Chicago should walk away from it. You would be paying premium capital for a player whose sack total has declined three years running, absorbing $14 million in guaranteed money, and then either losing him in March or paying market rate for an edge rusher who has not produced at market rate since 2023.
The Bears’ pass rush problem is real and it will cost them games. Thibodeaux is not clearly the solution, the Giants do not seem interested in selling, and the cleanest path for Chicago is internal development plus a midseason bargain. File this one under things fans want considerably more than front offices do.
A longtime sports reporter, Carlos Garcia has written about some of the biggest and most notable athletic events of the last 5 years. He has been credentialed to cover MLS, NBA and MLB games all over the United States. His work has been published on Fox Sports, Bleacher Report, AOL and the Washington Post.