Kevin Zeitler is a new name that Chicago Bears fans are about to obsess over as they search for offensive line upgrades this offseason.
We are in full-blown pivot mode since the news dropped that the Kansas City Chiefs had a change of heart and now plan on giving Trey Smith the Franchise Tag. Taking the Pro Bowl right guard off the market less than two weeks before he would have hit free agency did numbers to take the wind out of the sails of Bears fans who were hoping that signing Smith would jump-start an offseason of change. The bad news is that it wasn’t in the cards. But the good news is that other worthwhile offensive line options are worth targeting.
Enter Kevin Zeitler, a wily veteran just one year removed from earning a trip to the Pro Bowl with the Baltimore Ravens.
Last year, the University of Wisconsin product played 16 games for the Detroit Lions and was solid as the team’s right guard. Pro Football Focus thought highly of Kevin Zeitler’s performance in 2024, giving him an 86.8 grade, the third best among guards. The 2024 campaign represented the fourth consecutive season in which Zeitler was graded among the 15 best players in his position. It also marked the sixth time in seven seasons that it has happened. Impressive stuff, to be sure.
Now, Kevin Zeitler is on the cusp of hitting free agency. And the Bears could be in line to pursue him as a stop-gap option at right guard. For what it’s worth, there could be mutual interest here. At a minimum, it sure sounds like Zeitler would be interested in joining Chicago’s football team.
© Junfu Han / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn ImagesI was reading through Brad Biggs’ Tribune NFL Combine notes when this passage about veteran offensive line options who could become available to the Bears in free agency caught my eye (bold emphasis mine):
Other veterans could be short-term options too. Kevin Zeitler played last season for the Lions. The Waukesha, Wis., native told me after the Thanksgiving Day game at Ford Field that he has tried to get interest from the Bears in the past. He turns 35 on March 8, so you’re talking about another short-term fix, but maybe that’s a possibility if the Bears are thinking about a center (Dalman) in free agency and a guard in the first or second round of the draft. That would give them three new starters for the interior.
A part of me is annoyed that Kevin Zeitler has tried to join the Bears in the past, and the team hasn’t made it happen. It’s not as if these offensive line needs just popped up overnight. But there is a part of me that thinks there is no time better than the present to right the wrongs of the past.
Should the Chicago Bears pursue Kevin Zeitler?
The easy answer to the question posed in the headline above is a resounding yes. The Bears should absolutely pursue Kevin Zeitler in free agency. This is what I had to say about the possibility of pursuing Zeitler when putting him on my list of Plan B offensive line options after the Trey Smith tag news dropped:
KEVIN ZEITLER, Detroit Lions right guard — No Trey Smith? No problem. Perhaps new Bears Head Coach Ben Johnson can tap into the Lions pipeline and bring an old friend like Kevin Zeitler with him to Chicago. The 34-year-old guard has 198 games of playing experience under his belt and has played in at least 15 games in every NFL season since 2015. Age might be a concern for some, but others might view Zeitler as a bridge until the team finds a long-term option down the line.
Signing a 35-year-old right guard might not be the most popular thing this team would or could do this offseason, but it would certainly represent an upgrade to the offensive line. And I feel as if that is something every Bears fan wants this offseason. Plus, signing a veteran on a short-term deal could line things up for the team to draft a developmental project who can start down the road. Perhaps learning behind someone like Zeitler could help accelerate the development process.
MORE: New Names Emerge as Possible Bears Free Agent Offensive Line Fits
But even if I wasn’t looking ahead, signing Kevin Zeitler makes sense on its own merits. Zeitler plays a position the Bears need to fill — and plays it well. Pro Football Focus’ grades had Zeitler with the third-best overall grade (86.8), second-best run-blocking grade (87.2), and 19th-best pass-blocking grade (71.8) among guards last season. And despite entering his mid-30s, Zeitler has been a durable force along the offensive line. Zeitler has played on at least 96 percent of his team’s offensive snaps in each year since the start of the 2015 season. This covers stints with the Cincinnati Bengals (2015-16), Cleveland Browns (2017-18), New York Giants (2019-20), Baltimore Ravens (2021-23), and Detroit Lions (2024). The guy is a machine.
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