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New York Giants edge rusher Kayvon Thibodeaux.

The Chicago Bears remain candidates to wheel and deal for an edge-rusher, either leading up to the NFL draft later this month or after it concludes, and the franchise got some encouraging news on one potential candidate over the weekend.

Kayvon Thibodeaux, a former first-round pick of the New York Giants, is a top trade candidate who Jason LaCanfora of SportsBoom wrote Sunday is likely to wear a different uniform before the month of April is out.

“The more people you talk to, the more likely it seems that former top-five pick Kayvon Thibodeaux is headed elsewhere,” LaCanfora wrote. “Thibodeaux has been the center of trade rumors for years and there is a strong expectation among rival general managers that he will be gone by the second day of the NFL draft two weeks from now … if not sooner.”

LaCanfora noted a league executive who he described as “involved in major transactions involving the Giants in the past” who said New York is ready to move on from Thibodeaux if the team can get a third-round pick in return.

That arrangement could prove of value for the Bears, who have four picks across the first three rounds, including No. 89 late in Round 3, and have considerable needs to fill across the defensive front.

Kayvon Thibodeaux Offers Interesting Risk-Reward Profile for Bears

GettyEdge-rusher Kayvon Thibodeaux of the New York Giants.

Chicago could look to fill its needs at edge-rusher with the No. 25 overall pick, though the Bears are likely to get less positional value there than they could find at defensive tackle or safety.

Ben Solak and Dan Graziano named Chicago a trade suitor for Thibodeaux in late February and little has changed in the interim for either side.

“The Giants have a surplus of impact defensive linemen with Brian Burns and Abdul Carter, and it seems more likely they’ll try to find a trade partner for Thibodeaux than extend the 2022 first-round pick ahead of his fifth-year-option season,” Graziano wrote.

New York exercised its fifth-year option on Thibodeaux last spring, which pays him $14.75 million in 2026. He earned a total of $31.3 million over the first four years of his rookie contract ($46 million total).

“A contract year could light a fire under Thibodeaux, who generates quick pressures with hand usage and a killer first step,” Solak added. “He posted 2.5 sacks last season but also had 11.5 in 2023. That sort of production can keep a guy in a designated pass-rushing role for a long time in this league.”

Kayvon Thibodeaux Has High Chance of Being Traded

GettyPass-rusher Kayvon Thibodeaux of the New York Giants.

Graziano and Solak predicted that Thibodeaux had a 70 percent chance of getting traded six weeks ago. Giants head coach John Harbaugh confirmed last week that he is a trade candidate.

“I’m excited about him. I was fired up to see him today,” Harbaugh said of Thibodeaux, per SNYtv. “I’m thinking about him on the field. I’m thinking about getting him plugged into our defense and getting him rolling. You want to talk about is he a trade possibility? Everybody’s tradable. Everybody.”

Chicago has free agency options like Jadeveon Clowney to whom it could look for one season. But Thibodeaux could be a longterm solution if he bounces back in 2026.