Chicago has locked up defensive end Daniel Hardy with a fresh two-year deal valued at roughly $5 million, according to NFL Network reports released Sunday. The contract includes incentives that could push the total value close to $6 million.
The 27-year-old Hardy appeared in all 17 regular season contests for Chicago in 2025, primarily contributing as a special teams specialist. He made a single start during the season and recorded 22 total tackles. Hardy’s workload consisted mainly of special teams duties, participating in 78% of those snaps (355 total) while seeing limited defensive action at just 5% of snaps (54 total).
Hardy entered the NFL when Los Angeles selected him in the seventh round of the 2022 draft following his college career at Montana State. His rookie campaign began on injured reserve, and he managed to appear in six games that season. The Rams cut Hardy in August 2023, but Chicago quickly claimed him for their practice squad just two days later.
Throughout his professional career spanning 40 games, Hardy has accumulated 38 total tackles. Of those appearances, 34 came during his tenure with the Bears across the 2024 and 2025 seasons.
