Another quiet day for the Chicago Bears on the free-agent front. But that’s not necessarily a bad thing. Splashing it up just for the sake of doing so isn’t prudent, but are the Bears being too passive?

Let’s examine the teams that have spent the most money during the first two days of the NFL’s legal negotiating period.

Note: The above represents the amount of new total money spent on free agents this week and is current as of 6:00 PM ET on Tuesday.

Aside from the Packers, Rams, and Eagles, we have seven non-playoff teams with many holes to fill, spending at the top of the market early this week.

That’s why they say the “winner” of free agency is just that.

Would I have liked to have seen the Bears make one or two more moves? Sure. Calvin Ridley was high on my wishlist, but it seems like he prefers to remain in Jacksonville at this point. The Bears were in on Gabe Davis, and the money was similar to what he took from the Jaguars, but that was a preference thing for Davis.

I would have also liked to see them active in the second-tier centers, and I did have Bryce Huff circled as an edge rusher that I really liked for Chicago.

That being said, I really like what they have done thus far, and I don’t knock poles for being calculated, especially since the money that he has spent has been on players that fit his new offense under Shane Waldron and have been at a very good price point relative to the market.

For example, the Bears signed a very good running back with a very specific skillset that fits into a) Shane Waldron’s offense and b) the existing members of the Bears backfield share in D’Andre Swift.

Green Bay gave Josh Jacobs $48 million, and Philly gave Saquon Barkley $37.7 million. D’Andre Swift’s total money and guaranteed money came in lower than both Jacobs's and Barkley's by a healthy amount.

On Tuesday, Chicago signed former Chargers tight end Gerald Everett. I really like this signing at $12 million over two seasons but just $6.1 guaranteed. On Monday, the Rams signed Colby Parkinson to a three-year, $22 million deal with $15.5 guaranteed. Seattle gave Noah Fant $21 million over two years, and the Chargers gave Will Dissly $14 million over three years with $10 million guaranteed.

Everett was Justin Herbert’s safety blanket in the red zone in Los Angeles. He can break tackles and brush off contact, but he’s not much of a vertical threat. But he’s not here to be a vertical threat. That’s Cole Kmet’s job. Like the D’Andre Swift signing, Everett possesses a particular skill set that will fit into the offense that the Bears are trying to build under Shane Waldron, whom Everett has played for in Seattle and Los Angeles.

Everett has forced 28 missed tackles since 2022, feasts in the red zone, and is a perfect complement to Kmet. Again, it is money well spent by Poles in my book. Oh, and despite not being much of a vertical threat, Everett had 51 catches in 2023.

As Kevin Fishbain pointed out on Tuesday, Bears tight ends not named Cole Kmet have combined for 44 catches in the previous three seasons. They needed to get the TE2 spot right this offseason; I’ve been saying that since Week 18 ended, and they took a heck of a swing at it at a great price point here.

Oh, and let’s not forget that the Bears signed safety Kevin Byard on Sunday. Byard’s two-year, $15 million deal comes in behind Xavier McKinney ($68M), Darnell Savage ($21.7M), and Brandon Jones ($20M) and just ahead of Geno Stone ($14M).

Byard played for eight seasons and was regarded as one of the league's top safeties. During his career, he achieved 27 interceptions, with a career-best of eight picks during his 2017 All-Pro season.

He's taking over Eddie Jackson's position in the Chicago secondary, who was released earlier this offseason. With his skills and experience, Byard has a fantastic chance to thrive in this role. He is an intelligent player with a talent for finding the ball, and he is known for creating turnovers by capitalizing on errors. Byard's leadership and accountability are valuable qualities for any defense he plays in.

So, again, it's an excellent signing at a price point that leaves the Bears with plenty of flexibility.

The Bears also signed defensive back Jonathan Owens to a two-year deal. Ownes played 69 percent of Green Bay’s defensive snaps last season and logged 84 tackles while also playing 54 percent of the Packers’ special teams snaps. Owens is a great tackling safety who can play all over the field. That’s an excellent depth addition to their secondary.

Like I said, there are some areas I wish they would have spent more in, but just because they haven’t been among the big spenders early in free agency, doesn’t mean that what they have done hasn’t been strong.