As the Chicago Bears make an aggressive bid to add wide receiver Kenny Golladay, it’s time to consider the options to replace cornerback Kyle Fuller

Ryan Pace got a hit in the draft last year when he used a second-round pick on Jaylon Johnson, and now the Chicago Bears general manager has to put a plan in place to replace Kyle Fuller.

The plan at cornerback might not be put into motion until after the Bears’ pursuit of free-agent wide receiver Kenny Golladay either results in a reunion for a hometown kid or leaves the franchise moving to Plan B when it comes to skill position talent around new quarterback Andy Dalton.

The Bears could wait for the draft for options in what is considered a deep class of cornerbacks. But if Pace is planning a bold move for a quarterback in the draft — or if he prioritizes selecting an offensive tackle — that could make it difficult to identify a Day 1 starter at cornerback with a later pick, especially considering the team needs to also find a strong safety, an easier position to fill in the middle rounds.

It would be beneficial if the Bears replaced Fuller with a veteran to add a voice to the position room. And the good news is there are a handful of experienced players remaining in the marketplace. Casey Hayward, Bashaud Breeland and Xavier Rhodes have been high-caliber players in their careers, but might not come cheap if the Bears are really seeking a bargain buy.

The Bears appear to be clearing salary-cap room to bolster the offense, and the team has been trying to trade defensive lineman Akiem Hicks all week and could wind up releasing him to free $10.5 million in cap space. Losing Fuller will create $11 million in cap space. The team is making an aggressive pitch to sign Golladay, the St. Rita product who reached the open market when the Detroit Lions opted not to use the franchise tag on him.

A league source said the belief is the Bears have offered Golladay a one-year contract in the range of $11-12 million with the pitch that Golladay and Allen Robinson would give the Bears one of the best receiver duos in the NFL and that there would be enough balls to go around for both to be rewarded in the near future. The thinking is it will give the Bears the best chance to win with Dalton if they can win consistently on the outside and don’t have to thrust emerging talent Darnell Mooney into a higher-profile role just yet.

Golladay is visiting the New York Giants on Friday and has reportedly received strong interest from the Cincinnati Bengals with the Baltimore Ravens also entering the mix.

Cornerback Patrick Peterson signed with the Minnesota Vikings on a $10 million, one-year contract and Fuller will likely be in the range of $10 million per year if the Bears terminate his contract if they are unable to facilitate a trade for a late-round pick. Hayward will probably command more than $5 million per season. Rhodes and Breeland both played for $3 million last season and, at least right now, they will be seeking more than that.

Hayward is a natural zone cornerback who is physical and will tackle and that would make him an ideal fit for Sean Desai’s scheme, especially if the Bears want to get back to looking more like they did under former coordinator Vic Fangio. Breeland played more man coverage with the Kansas City Chiefs, but he’s got good length and is competitive. Rhodes, a former first-round pick of the Vikings, was cast off after a rough ending in Minnesota in 2019 but played well last season for the Indianapolis Colts in a heavy zone scheme. He lacks high-end speed, but is physical.

Other cornerbacks with starting experience that could be bridge options include Darqueze Dennard, Gareon Conley and Kevin King, who senior defensive assistant Mike Pettine knows well from their time together in Green Bay. Those three options would probably come a little cheaper, and the Bears could be bargain shopping here with the hope of finding a guy who can play well on a short-term contract.

The Bears were positive about the play of fifth-round draft pick Kindle Vildor, who got 135 snaps last season. He could compete for playing time, but it seems unlikely the team would go into the offseason program with him as the front-runner for the job.

The team also needs a nickel cornerback and considering the salary-cap crunch the team is under, there is a good chance the Bears lean on Duke Shelley, who got 208 snaps on defense last season. A sixth-round draft pick in 2019, he was drafted with the idea that he could develop into a starting nickel cornerback and right now he’s the leading candidate for that role.

Clearly, there are many layers to the plan at Halas Hall and like Pace and coach Matt Nagy said last week, everything really is on the table.

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