I am surprised the Bears only got a 5th for him. Feels like Poles got fleeced by his understudy. Dexter was a former 2nd round pick, and was only 24 years old. The Falcons added a player they were going to cut anyway.

They must really feel comfortable with van den Berg.

Also, they are still waiting for Dexter to move after the snap.

Since the Bears traded a 5th for Bradbury, this trade basically becomes Bradbury + Phillips for Dexter.

I'm kinda meh on the whole situation. In one hand, I've never seen the wow in Dexter, but have been optimistic about his potential. Dexter's career here reminds me of Alonzo Spellman. Two big, strong, freaks of nature that couldn't get off the snap.

I was tired of waiting for him to become a difference maker on our DL. He always fell short. If this puts VDB in his place, outstanding move.

My understanding is that Dexter is nursing an injury. However minor, I'm sure it would have affected his trade value.

One thing for sure. No way does he deserve a big pay raise, and that is exactly what it would have taken to avoid him walking next season. I would have liked at least a 4th-rounder, but a fifth will suffice, along with the cap savings.

Fwiw I like this Phillips kid. The brief highlights I’ve watched on him (sorry couldn’t get a link) he seems like a tough little defender. Heck knows the Bears need depth at Corner. And he played at Jaylon Johnson’s alma mater.

24 minutes ago, Alaskan Grizzly said:

Fwiw I like this Phillips kid. The brief highlights I’ve watched on him (sorry couldn’t get a link) he seems like a tough little defender. Heck knows the Bears need depth at Corner. And he played at Jaylon Johnson’s alma mater.

I think this was a great addition to provide us with much-needed depth at DB. Definitely sweetens the deal.

Dexter was a second round pick and did not excel at the position. We changed D scheme and was said to not fit. He was average but did get 6 sacks last year. In a better fit, he may excel. We were not going to resign him so at least we got something out of him.

We are stacked at DT. We added Galimore, Lynch, Street , drafted VDB and a surprise UDFA in Loving. Add Jarrett and that's 6 DTs. We could afford to let him go because those players seem to fit DAs scheme better. (faster and penetratingly )

Phillips has played NB and was the 7th overall rated DB in his draft. His size is what caused him to drop to the 4th round. It adds depth to a position we have some injures. Gordon is still a big question mark, Jaylon Jones got a hamstring in the Titan game.

JJ, Stevenson, Terell Smith, Muhammad ( rookie) , Blackwell ( injured J Jones, and Gordon). Phillips isnt special but is a vet for added depth. With Bryant being hurt Cam Lewis has to play S so we needed something else to play NB.

This was a realistic trade for a 5th and a player. A 4th would seem to be the proper value but we were not going to resign him.

It's a tough pill to swallow when you can only get a 5th round pick for someone drafted in the 2nd round only a few years ago, but it's better to get something for a guy the Bears had no intention of re-signing, and who was losing reps to other guys on the roster.

The decision to draft him in the first place was always perplexing. He played in a read and react system at Florida, but the Bears drafted him as an up-field player in Matt Eberflus' system. Dennis Allen also uses his DT's as up-field guys instead of space eaters, which is not what Dexter is good at. His get off speed was one of his biggest weaknesses in college. Just horrible scouting by Ryan Poles on this one. There's no way around it. You can't whiff on so many 2nd round draft picks. Unfortunately, it seems like Stevenson and Shemar Turner won't be that far behind.

2 hours ago, Alaskan Grizzly said:

Fwiw I like this Phillips kid. The brief highlights I’ve watched on him (sorry couldn’t get a link) he seems like a tough little defender. Heck knows the Bears need depth at Corner. And he played at Jaylon Johnson’s alma mater.

Don't know anything about him, but I saw some ATL people say he was better at outside than inside in their system, but struggled against the run. At 5'9, I see no world he plays outside in Dennis Allen's system. But if nickel isn't his strong suit either, I'm not sure how much value he has to the team as a backup.

I'm hoping the Bears can get more out of him at Nickel than ATL did, because it would allow Mohamed to play his more natural position on the outside.

2 hours ago, Pixote said:

I was tired of waiting for him to become a difference maker on our DL. He always fell short. If this puts VDB in his place, outstanding move.

My understanding is that Dexter is nursing an injury. However minor, I'm sure it would have affected his trade value.

One thing for sure. No way does he deserve a big pay raise, and that is exactly what it would have taken to avoid him walking next season. I would have liked at least a 4th-rounder, but a fifth will suffice, along with the cap savings.

Is there any cap savings? Phillips carries a $3.8M cap hit for this season, Dexter was $2.1M. Since ATL is only on the hook for this year's bonus, it looks like the Bears would take on the other $3.6M. Dexter actually has a bigger bonus ($472K), so it looks like the Bears will need $2M in cap space with this move.

24 minutes ago, adam said:

Is there any cap savings? Phillips carries a $3.8M cap hit for this season, Dexter was $2.1M. Since ATL is only on the hook for this year's bonus, it looks like the Bears would take on the other $3.6M. Dexter actually has a bigger bonus ($472K), so it looks like the Bears will need $2M in cap space with this move.

I think we will see how it works by 5 pm tonight when the 53 is set. Not sure if there is cap savings maybe from surprise cut or maybe another trade.

3 hours ago, Mongo3451 said:

I'm kinda meh on the whole situation. In one hand, I've never seen the wow in Dexter, but have been optimistic about his potential. Dexter's career here reminds me of Alonzo Spellman. Two big, strong, freaks of nature that couldn't get off the snap.

I feel the same. Of course I like both Loving and VDB. Overall I feel the depth at DT has improved but not the top end, that is with or without Dexter. This clears room for the young guys to get snaps and grow so we can know exactly what we have on hand by next offseason. Dexter wasn't going to change between now and February and was not going to be re-signed. That is more important as we head into the next offseason.

This is a win now league and there are a lot of coaches who will always prefer to hang onto the veteran over giving rookies playing time. This coaching staff is 100% willing to bet on themselves and their ability to develop young talent.

I've only seen highlights of CB Phillips we picked up. Clearly there's a reason ATL doesn't want him so we'll have to learn the downsides. However, I can see that he is an extremely quick athlete. Definitely has that quick twitch you prefer at NB but he hasn't performed well there in ATL. He's not tall nor long enough to really defend boundary throws. I'm curious to see where we try him out first but either way he adds some talent, depth, and experience at the bottom of the roster. Interesting to note that he replaced Jaylon at Utah so that little connection along with Al Harris might help get him back on track.

17 minutes ago, AZ54 said:

I feel the same. Of course I like both Loving and VDB. Overall I feel the depth at DT has improved but not the top end, that is with or without Dexter. This clears room for the young guys to get snaps and grow so we can know exactly what we have on hand by next offseason. Dexter wasn't going to change between now and February and was not going to be re-signed. That is more important as we head into the next offseason.

This is a win now league and there are a lot of coaches who will always prefer to hang onto the veteran over giving rookies playing time. This coaching staff is 100% willing to bet on themselves and their ability to develop young talent.

I've only seen highlights of CB Phillips we picked up. Clearly there's a reason ATL doesn't want him so we'll have to learn the downsides. However, I can see that he is an extremely quick athlete. Definitely has that quick twitch you prefer at NB but he hasn't performed well there in ATL. He's not tall nor long enough to really defend boundary throws. I'm curious to see where we try him out first but either way he adds some talent, depth, and experience at the bottom of the roster. Interesting to note that he replaced Jaylon at Utah so that little connection along with Al Harris might help get him back on track.

This might mean Gordon starts on the season on IR, which nothing from camp showed he was even getting close.

Kyler Gordon has to be the biggest build up and let down from the Dennis Allen era. I thought he was going to be the heart of the D from all the hype we were told.

Baldy breakdown says it all...

https://www.facebook.com/share/v/1D1WvkRGig/

58 minutes ago, ASHKUM BEAR said:

This might mean Gordon starts on the season on IR, which nothing from camp showed he was even getting close.

Kyler Gordon has to be the biggest build up and let down from the Dennis Allen era. I thought he was going to be the heart of the D from all the hype we were told.

I don't see how any of that is the coaches fault.

3 minutes ago, AZ54 said:

I don't see how any of that is the coaches fault.

Never blamed the coaches, stating this is year 2 of DA and we are not going to see this vision. It's a huge let down to

27 minutes ago, ASHKUM BEAR said:

Never blamed the coaches, stating this is year 2 of DA and we are not going to see this vision. It's a huge let down to

agreed. Some players get the big money and that’s it.

5 hours ago, AZ54 said:

there are a lot of coaches who will always prefer to hang onto the veteran over giving rookies playing time. This coaching staff is 100% willing to bet on themselves and their ability to develop young talent.

For sure. And that portends well.

17 hours ago, ASHKUM BEAR said:

This might mean Gordon starts on the season on IR, which nothing from camp showed he was even getting close.

Kyler Gordon has to be the biggest build up and let down from the Dennis Allen era. I thought he was going to be the heart of the D from all the hype we were told.

If I understand the rules proper, there is a short term (4 week) pup list and a 6 week designation. Not sure how they decide those actions.

Atlanta is signing Dexter to a 4 year 78 million extension with 48.5 guaranteed. Matt Ryan making bad football decisions?

I told myself there is no way that's happening. Then the AI search:

"The Atlanta Falcons have signed defensive tackle Gervon Dexter Sr. to a four-year, $78 million contract extension with $46.5 million guaranteed.

Dexter, originally a second-round pick for the Chicago Bears, was acquired by Atlanta on August 30, 2026, in exchange for cornerback Clark Phillips III and a 2027 fifth-round draft pick. The deal, agreed to just one month after the trade, makes Dexter the 21st-highest-paid interior defensive lineman in the NFL with an average annual value of $19.5 million.

Since joining the Falcons, Dexter has been a key contributor to a defensive front that ranks in the top 3 in the NFL for quarterback pressure rate. Through the first three games of the 2026 season, he recorded 7 tackles, 0.5 sacks, and 14 total pressures, ranking among the league's top interior pass rushers. Falcons General Manager Ian Cunningham, formerly the Bears' assistant GM, cited Dexter's "power, disruption and impact" as the primary reasons for the long-term commitment."

1 hour ago, AZ54 said:

I told myself there is no way that's happening. Then the AI search:

"The Atlanta Falcons have signed defensive tackle Gervon Dexter Sr. to a four-year, $78 million contract extension with $46.5 million guaranteed.

Dexter, originally a second-round pick for the Chicago Bears, was acquired by Atlanta on August 30, 2026, in exchange for cornerback Clark Phillips III and a 2027 fifth-round draft pick. The deal, agreed to just one month after the trade, makes Dexter the 21st-highest-paid interior defensive lineman in the NFL with an average annual value of $19.5 million.

Since joining the Falcons, Dexter has been a key contributor to a defensive front that ranks in the top 3 in the NFL for quarterback pressure rate. Through the first three games of the 2026 season, he recorded 7 tackles, 0.5 sacks, and 14 total pressures, ranking among the league's top interior pass rushers. Falcons General Manager Ian Cunningham, formerly the Bears' assistant GM, cited Dexter's "power, disruption and impact" as the primary reasons for the long-term commitment."

Atl fans are happy so far, see how they feel by week 12. Great for Dexter, he just wasnt the type of DT the Bears want (3T)

Dexter wasn't a horrible player while on the team. Just (like Ashkum said) wasn't what they needed in the middle. Of course I'm still not sure they've found their guy just yet. That is unless Van De Berg is THAT guy(?).