The Bears have released defensive lineman DeMarcus Walker, the team announced Friday afternoon.

This is the second expected cut to come out of a single news cycle, with the Bears creating salary-cap space while providing veterans with plenty of runway to find a new team.

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Walker’s release is expected to save the Bears $5.25 million in cap space heading into the more active portions of the 2025 NFL offseason. Tight end Gerald Everett also was informed of his release, which will save $5.5 million with $1 million in dead money associated with the transaction. In total, these two moves should save the Bears $10.75 million in cap space.

While their exact NFL salary-cap number isn’t known, these moves will push the Bears deep into the $70 million range in space, possibly beyond that.

Walker was drafted in the second round of the 2017 NFL draft by the Denver Broncos. He played out his rookie deal there, before spending a year in Houston, another in Tennessee and the last two in Chicago.

Walker signed a three-year deal with the team worth a $21 million total, though there wasn’t any more guaranteed money in the deal.

He totaled 47 tackles, 3.5 sacks, seven tackles for losses and 16 quarterback hits during the 2024 campaign. He played 60 percent of the Bears’ defensive snaps in 2024, totaling a career-high 739 game reps over 17 contests.

Walker’s an outgoing personality who was well liked in the Bears defensive line room, but shuffling is always expected following a wholesale coaching staff change. The Bears don’t have many contracts with significant cap space attached, though Everett and Walker were two of them.

It’s uncertain if we’ll see more coming down the pike as free agency approaches, but making early cuts is ultimately better for the player to find a new spot. It also allows the team to better account for their plans in free agency and what it might have to spend on what should be a competitive open market.