Leonard Floyd remains in the Bears’ long-term plans.
Floyd, the outside linebacker the Bears chose with the ninth overall pick in the 2016 NFL draft, will have his fifth-year option picked up, Bears General Manager Ryan Pace said today.
That means Floyd will be under contract with the Bears through the 2020 season, and his salary for 2020 will rise to around $13 million. That salary will be guaranteed for injury, meaning if Floyd gets hurt in 2019 and can’t play in 2020, the Bears would still have to pay him, but if he’s healthy the Bears could choose to release him.
The 26-year-old Floyd is coming off a good season in which he started all 16 games for the NFL’s best defense. The Bears see him as a major building block in a team they hope will be back in the playoffs a year from now, and for years to come.