Former Packers S Jonathan Owens to sign with Chicago Bears

Owens started 11 games for the Packers in his lone season in Green Bay. On Wednesday, he’ll sign a two-year deal with the Bears.

According to NFL Network’s Mike Garafolo, the Chicago Bears have agreed to terms with former Green Bay Packers safety Jonathan Owens. Owens will ink a two-year deal with the Bears on Wednesday when free agency officially begins in the NFL.

Last season, Owens signed a one-year, $1.01 million contract with the Packers to be a cheap veteran addition to their safety room. With Adrian Amos on the way out, Green Bay had Owens and Rudy Ford split time at safety across from Darnell Savage. Ultimately, Owens started 11 games for the Packers after starting 17 for the Houston Texans the season prior.

While his defensive performance left a bad taste in the mouths of Packers fans, Owens was a solid gunner on special teams and contributed on various other units. At the moment, it’s unclear whether Owens will be in the mix on defense for Chicago or if he’ll simply be asked to be a special teamer. Currently, the details of his contract are not available.

Owens’ wife, Olympic gold medalist Simone Biles, took to Twitter/X to speak on the transaction, first to thank Packers fans and second to celebrate no longer needing a connecting flight to Green Bay.

Despite the fact that Green Bay did sign a splash free agent at the position in Xavier McKinney, the team still needs another starter next to him at safety. Not only have the Packers now lost Owens, but Savage has also agreed to a free-agent deal with the Jacksonville Jaguars. Be it free agency or the draft, general manager Brian Gutekunst will need to find someone to pair with McKinney this offseason. With Owens out of the picture, an outside signing becomes even more likely.

Based on the Packers’ activity on the linebacker front, the team must think they still have some money to play around with in the veteran market. According to The Athletic’s list of free agents, here are the following top-150 players still available at the safety position after two days of “legal tampering”:

• #22 Justin Simmons
• #30 Kyle Dugger
• #33 C.J. Gardner-Johnson
• #58 Marcus Maye
• #75 Julian Blackmon
• #90 Rayshawn Jenkins
• #112 Quandre Diggs
• #115 Tashaun Gipson Sr.
• #130 Jordan Fuller
• #133 Jeremy Reaves
• #150 Jamal Adams