The Chicago Bears are hoping to catch lightning in a bottle with pass-rusher Aaron Lynch this upcoming season. He signed a one-year deal with the organization last week and details recently emerged regarding the specifics of his new deal. According to the Houston Chronicle's Aaron Wilson, Lynch's deal is worth $4 million with $1.25 million guaranteed. The deal included a $1.25 million signing bonus, a base salary of $2.2 million and $31,250 per games he is active.

Before entering college and the NFL, Lynch was once one of the most highly sought-after recruits in all of high school football as part of the Class of 2011. Recruited as a strong-side defensive end out of Island Coast High School in Cape Coral, Florida, Lynch was listed as a five-star recruit with a 0.9947 composite score by 247Sports. He was listed as the top recruit at his position, ninth nationally overall and third in the state of Florida.

Lynch went on to commit to Notre Dame and registered 33 tackles, seven tackles for loss and 5.5 sacks as a true freshman in 12 games. Lynch decided he wanted to transfer to South Florida after his freshman year to be closer to home and had to sit out one year due to NCAA rules in 2012. In 2013 as a redshirt sophomore he recorded 29 tackles, 12 tackles for loss and five sacks in 12 games. He then went on to forego his remaining years of eligibility to enter the 2014 NFL Draft.

In his first season in San Francisco under current Bears defensive coordinator Vic Fangio he appeared in all 16 games with three starts. He was used primarily as a rotational/pass-rushing outside linebacker. He finished the season with 23 tackles, six sacks and four pass deflections. Fangio moved on to the Bears in 2015, but Lynch put together another solid season with a bigger workload that season. In 14 games with 13 starts he recorded 38 tackles, 6.5 sacks and three pass deflections.

In a change of philosophy in 2016 defensively under head coach Chip Kelly and defensive coordinator Jim O'Neil, Lynch saw a dip in production. He only appeared in seven games, missing four due to a suspension from the league, and ended the year with just 13 tackles and 1.5 sacks. In 2017 the 49ers made the move to a 4-3 scheme, forcing Lynch to play with his hand in the ground as a defensive end. He added weight to his frame but only recording nine tackles and one sack in seven games.

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With Chicago's options currently limited at the outside linebacker position, there is a chance Lynch is a starter for the team in 2018. Leonard Floyd is coming off a season-ending injury, Isaiah Irving and Howard Jones are unproven commodities and Sam Acho, who was re-signed last week, does not offer much as a pure pass-rusher. The opportunities will be there for Lynch and it will be up to him to seize the opportunity.