Bears sign CB Desmond Trufant to one-year deal

The Bears have signed cornerback Desmond Trufant to a one-year deal, ESPN’s Adam Schefter reported on Friday. The financial terms of the deal have yet to be announced.

Trufant, 30, spent the 2020 season with the Lions after seven seasons with the Falcons, during which he made the Pro Bowl in 2015. He started in six games for Detroit this past season in a campaign plagued by a nagging hamstring injury. In his eight-year career, Trufant has 14 interceptions and 83 pass deflections to his name.

Known as a talented defensive back, Trufant has missed 17 games over the past two seasons due to injury. He finished with a lackluster PFF grade of 38.4 in his lone season in Detroit, but he finished with an above-average grade of 70.2 in 2019 for the Falcons. He allowed a 68.8 completion percentage last year.

The signing of Trufant comes just one day after the Bears released two-time Pro Bowler Kyle Fuller to free up cap space. While Trufant’s salary has not been revealed as of this writing, one would believe that his contract would be much cheaper than that of Fuller, who had an average yearly salary of $14 million before being cut.

Trufant will likely step in as Chicago’s starting field-side cornerback alongside Jaylon Johnson, but his age and the one-year nature of his contract indicates that the team could still target a cornerback early in the 2021 NFL Draft.