As June 1st trade rules come into focus, the Chicago Bears are being linked to one defender more than any other in a roundtable of possible moves: Josh Sweat. The discussion did not produce a deal, but it did show how the post-June 1 mechanism could reshape the Bears' offseason if the team chooses to act.

The appeal is simple enough. Under a post-June 1 designation, teams can spread dead cap charges on veteran contracts across future seasons, which can make expensive trades easier to absorb once the money comes due. That is why there is expected to be more movement around the league now, even with the New England Patriots and Philadelphia Eagles already circling an all-but-finalized deal for AJ Brown.

Donald Gooch said he would like the Bears to go after Sweat if they make a trade, calling the edge rusher a fit for the physical demands of a defensive end in a DA defense. Gooch also said Sweat is under control for three seasons, and added that he sees a legitimate chance the player could end up in Chicago sometime in the near future. He even sketched out a framework built around a pair of third-round picks, which would be the kind of price that tells a team it is buying now instead of waiting on the draft board.

There was more than one way to improve the roster in the roundtable, and not every idea pointed the same direction. Josh Sunderbruch said he would like the Bears to get some value out of Tyson Bagent in a trade-away scenario, suggesting a swap that would send a 4th for a 3rd or a 5th and a 2028 conditional pick. He also said that if the Bears are not going to play Tyrique Stevenson, they should trade him now and get some sort of value out of him. Gary Baugher Jr., meanwhile, said the entire offensive side of the ball is untouchable to him, adding that Cole Kmet would not be moved anyway because of the money involved.

The one name that created the cleanest break in opinion was Maxx Crosby. Gooch said he does not want the Bears to trade for Crosby, citing the draft capital it would take, his age and the fact that he has been hurt in the last two seasons. “The juice isn’t worth the squeeze,” he said. That leaves Sweat as the more plausible target in a market where the Bears are clearly being discussed as buyers, but where no actual trade has been confirmed.

The question now is not whether the post-June 1 window can create opportunity. It is whether Chicago uses it to bring in an edge rusher like Sweat, or whether this roundtable ends up reading as the clearest sign yet of interest that never turned into a move.