Roster Moves: Bears sign Drew Dalman, Dayo Odeyingbo |
The Chicago Bears on Thursday signed veteran offensive lineman Drew Dalman to a three-year contract and veteran defensive lineman Dayo Odeyingbo to a three-year contract.
Dalman arrives in Chicago after spending his first four professional seasons with the Atlanta Falcons (2021-24), starting at center in each of his last 40 games played for the Falcons. Upon entering the league as a fourth-round selection (114th overall) by Atlanta in the 2021 NFL Draft, Dalman saw action in all 17 games as a rookie in a contributing role, before going on to start each of his next 40 games at center, accumulating 57 career appearances. Last season, Dalman started nine games at center for the Falcons, anchoring an offensive front that finished the season ranked No. 6 in the NFL in total offense (369.8 yards per game). A native of Salinas, Calif., Dalman prepped collegiately at Stanford University (2017-20), starting 22-of-25 career games played over four seasons of action for the Cardinal. As a senior in 2020, Dalman, a team captain, helped lead Stanford to a winning record, earning First-Team All-Pac 12 Conference recognition. Odeyingbo joins the Bears after spending his first four NFL seasons with the Indianapolis Colts (2021-24). Since entering the league as a second-round selection (54th overall) by the Colts in the 2021 NFL Draft, Odeyingbo has appeared in 61 career games (19 starts), totaling 106 tackles (58 solo), including 21 tackles for loss, 16.5 sacks and two passes defensed to go along with five forced fumbles and three fumble recoveries. Last year, Odeyingbo started 14 of his 17 appearances, matching a career-high with 17 quarterback hits for the Colts, one season removed from totaling a career-best eight sacks in 2023. Odeyingbo appeared in all 17 regular-season games for Indianapolis over each of the last three seasons. Prior to entering the NFL, the Irving, Texas, native appeared in 44 career games (29 starts) at Vanderbilt University (2017-20), recording 125 tackles with 31 registering as tackles for loss, which ranked top-five all-time in program history following his final season of action. A team captain as a senior in 2020, Odeyingbo capped his collegiate career with Second-Team All-Southeastern Conference honors after leading the Commodores in sacks (5.5) and tackles for loss (eight).
