Chicago Bears: 5 Free Agents The Chicago Bears Need To Target
By Kyle Edmond
Chicago Bears Free Agent Target #3: Storm Norton, OL
The road to the NFL has been a bit different for Storm Norton, but it’s one we may start to see more in the near future. A native of Toledo, Ohio, Norton went to the same high school as new Chicago Bears head coach Matt Eberflus. Also like Eberflus, Norton was a hometown kid at the University of Toledo in college. Not a bad start for talking points during the free agency process.
After catching on with the nearby Detroit Lions as an undrafted free agent in 2017, Norton spent the season between practice squads with the Lions and the Arizona Cardinals. He moved to the Minnesota Vikings in 2018 and played just one game there before changing course to the XFL’s Los Angeles Wildcats.
Before the pandemic shutdown the XFL for the season, Norton was ranked as the league’s best offensive lineman and it caught the attention of another team in the city, the Los Angeles Chargers. Norton signed with the Chargers in April of 2020 and has spent the last two seasons there.
With the Chargers, Norton appeared in 23 games and started 18, including 15 during the 2021 season. Standing 6-foot-7, Norton is clearly a tackle at the NFL level. He’ll still be just 28-years old at the start of the 2022 season and could be very cheap.
Norton’s deal with the Chargers was a two-year deal worth a total of $1.53 million. Now, his performance will up that price this time around but there’s a chance the Bears could grab an under-the-radar, potential starting offensive lineman for around $5 million a season. That would be a tremendous addition to this Bears offense that desperately needs offensive line help.