The Chicago Bears have begun whittling down their roster of 90 players to 53. Head coach Ben Johnson and GM Ryan Poles have until August 26th to get things in order. Given what we know about this front office over the past few years, it is safe to assume they might have an additional move or two in mind. So far, there haven’t been any big surprises. Here are the latest names. We will be adding more as the news trickles out.
Chicago Bears roster moves ahead of deadline.
WR Samori Toure
This is hardly a surprise. Toure didn’t do much to stand out in training camp. Meanwhile, others like Jahdae Walker made big impressions. The Bears were already deep at the position. Toure never stood a chance.
LB Swayze Bozeman
Subscribe to the BFR Youtube channel and ride shotgun with Dave and Ficky as they break down Bears football like nobody else.
Ruben Hyppolite and Noah Sewell have stood out the most this preseason at linebacker, while Amen has too much special teams value. Bozeman got lost in the crowd.
OL Chris Glaser
Glaser never had a real shot at a spot with Luke Newman playing so well this past month and Ryan Bates seemingly returning to form.
TE Thomas Gordon
Cole Kmet and Colston Loveland are the obvious #1-2 options. Durham Smythe feels like the lock at #3. Maybe Joel Wilson gets the fourth spot, but Gordon had not shot.
DB Mark Perry
Perry came in as an interesting undrafted rookie, but the Chicago Bears never really had any open spots at safety with Kevin Byard, Jaquan Brisker, Elijah Hicks, and Jonathan Owens.
DB Jeremiah Walker
As is the case with many on this list, the numbers game made it almost impossible for Walker to make any headway in competition.
CB Terell Smith (Injured Reserve)
Tearing the patella tendon in the middle of a strong preseason really sucks. Smith looked like he might challenge for serious playing time.
TE Joel Wilson
Wilson had a productive camp and preseason for the Bears. The unfortunate reality was the team likely plans to carry just three tight ends, and those spots were locked up before camp even started.
CB Zah Frazier (NFI list)
The 5th round pick missed all of training camp for the Bears with “personal reasons.” It still hasn’t been revealed what happened, but this move suggests the team would like to keep him around.
DB Millard Bradford
Never really stood out in practice and was trapped in a secondary with too few open spots to compete for.
DL Xavier Carlton
Same as Bradford. He was mostly a camp body to fill a spot but didn’t do much with the opportunities he had.
DB Alex Cook
Cook had a brief moment in the spotlight in the preseason opener when he blasted Miami’s quarterback on an all-out blitz. Outside of that, there wasn’t much worth discussing.
LB Power Echols
Echols was considered one of the better undrafted free agents the Bears got. He had a solid preseason but didn’t make up enough ground to overtake others. His lack of special teams value likely hurt.
DB Kaleb Hayes
Don’t expect to make the roster if your name is never mentioned in practice. Such was the case for Hayes.
QB Austin Reed
Reed was once again solid in his time on the field for Chicago. He could be a practice squad option for them again, but was never unseating Tyson Bagent or Case Keenum.
RB Ian Wheeler
It is such a bummer he didn’t make the team, but Wheeler made a strong effort. That is worth praising after tearing his ACL last season.
DB Tre Flowers
This one is a minor surprise. Flowers had a solid August and felt like he could be a reliable reserve at cornerback. Maybe the Chicago Bears push him to the practice squad.
RB Royce Freeman
Freeman didn’t waste time by scoring a touchdown in his first appearance. Unfortunately, he arrived too late to make a strong enough impression.
OL Joshua Miles
The Bears have a ton of depth along their offensive line. Miles had too much competition to deal with.
C Ricky Stromberg
There was a lot of optimism about what Stromberg could bring to the table after coming over from Washington. Unfortunately, the massive reshuffle of the interior OL hurt his chances.
WR JP Richardson
Things got off to a great start for Richardson in training camp. However, the deep group of receivers and the rise of Jahdae Walker may have killed his chances.
DE Tanoh Kpassagnon
The former high draft choice was familiar with Dennis Allen from their time in New Orleans together. That doesn’t seem to have helped much after his pedestrian camp.
LS Luke Elkin
With Patrick Scales gone, the long snapping job would transition to Scott Daley, whom the Bears signed last year. He was never in any danger from Elkin.
DT Zacch Pickens
The Bears took back-to-back defensive tackles in 2023: Gervon Dexter and Pickens. Dexter has become a quality player for them. Pickens never managed to capitalize on his obvious talent.
WR Tyler Scott
Scott had plenty of opportunities to establish himself over the past two years. He just failed to take advantage, with dropped passes and zero special teams value.
RB Travis Homer (Injured Reserve)
One of the best Bears special teams players has been battling a calf problem all summer. Now he is out for the first four games of the season.
LB Amen Ogbongbemiga (Injured Reserve)
Another core specials teams presence. It isn’t clear how Ogbongbemiga got hurt, but losing him is another hit to the team’s third phase.
DB Tysheem Johnson
There was a serious buzz when camp started about Johnson. As is often the case, he wasn’t able to live up to it. His name was rarely mentioned in practices or preseason games.
OL Doug Kramer Jr.
Kramer has survived on the roster for years, but health has constantly gotten him into trouble. Ultimately, that is what buried him once again here.
OL Bill Murray
He was a standout in the preseason last year for the Bears and got some playing time. However, the overhaul of the interior and the new offensive coaching staff crippled his chances of staying.
WR Maurice Alexander
He had some exciting moments in the preseason, but the rise of Jahdae Walker all but torpedoed his chances of cracking the roster. The practice squad seems likely for him.
RB Brittain Brown
Chicago made some interesting decisions at running back with the final cuts. Brown looked like a decent addition, but apparently Ben Johnson wants something else.
DL Jonathan Ford
Ford was like most others on this list. He was a camp body who needed to have a great preseason to get a shot. It didn’t work out.
DL Jamree Kromah
The former undrafted free agent made some nice plays in the preseason. It wasn’t enough to outpace Austin Booker or Dominique Robinson, though.
OL Jordan McFadden
The Bears tried to trade him over the past week. No takers materialized. McFadden had a strong preseason, but the crowded depth chart made it impossible to keep him.
WR Miles Boykin
The veteran offered some size and special teams value. Just not enough to overshadow guys like Walker and Devin Duvernay.
TE Stephen Carlson
If you can’t outperform Joel Wilson in the preseason, the odds of you making the roster are remote.
