The Chicago Bears already cut one former draft pick in Jonathan Bullard today. They’ve upped the ante since then by not only removing a 2018 draft choice from their roster but a 2019 one as well. It started with 7th round pick Stephen Denmark. An obvious big athletic talent at corner, he suffered health setbacks since the beginning of training camp. With others like Michael Joseph, Jonathan Franklin, and Clifton Duck outperforming him, this shouldn’t have been any sort of surprise.
The other is former 6th round pick Kylie Fitts. In what is looking like a superb 2018 class overall, Fitts has been far and away the biggest disappointment. A fascinating pass rusher out of Utah, he seemed to have an interesting mix of bend and burst. The question was did he have the length and power to take full advantage of those traits. The simple answer is no. He looked fine in the preseason as a rookie.
This year though it seems like he regressed. He rarely applied pressure to quarterbacks and too often was held up by single blockers. Some of whom won’t be employed when the regular season begins. That is no doubt why the Bears chose to send him packing. Both could be options for the practice squad.
Chicago Bears need to make adjustments at OLB
While the Bears are in good shape at cornerback, the issue at outside linebacker isn’t fixed just with Fitts going away. They still have serious depth concerns. James Vaughters, the CFL standout who joined the team in January, appears to have made the roster. This doesn’t mean they have reason to feel comfortable. Between him and Isaiah Irving, the two combine for one career sack in the NFL. Not ideal.
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It wouldn’t be a surprise if they grab somebody off waivers or in free agency to fill that void. Then again Ryan Pace’s judgment of good outside linebackers can best be called shaky at this point.
