Alec Ogletree was an afterthought in the minds of most NFL fans as early as last week. He was just another veteran linebacker pushing 30 who may never crack another roster after an unfortunate stint with the New York Jets last season. Now he’s suddenly viewed as a virtual lock to make the Chicago Bears’ final 53 after a four-practice run that saw him intercept a whopping six passes during drills.
That isn’t the crazy part though. No, the crazy part is Ogletree was never supposed to be in Chicago when the deal came together. He’d been back home down in Georgia. However, on August 1st he received a phone call. It was from Robert Quinn. The two are good friends and former teammates from their years together with the Rams. Quinn’s sister Jasmine Camacho-Quinn was about to run the 100m hurdles at the Tokyo Olympics for a chance at the gold medal. The Bears were going to show the race at Halas Hall as part of a special viewing.
Of course, Ogletree would be there.
“I came to watch his sister run and spoke to all the coaches and stuff, and obviously I did a couple workouts here before. (I) didn’t really think anything of it, just was going to be here for a couple days and then go back to Georgia.”
Everybody was treated to an unforgettable show. Camacho-Quinn blazed to a 12.37 time en route to a gold medal. An incredible accomplishment. One her big brother couldn’t be prouder of. The cheering at Halas Hall was no doubt excessively loud. After enjoying himself, Ogletree planned to head back home. That was when he got a phone call from his agent asking where he was.
“I said, ‘I’m in Chicago.’ He’s like, ‘Uh, don’t leave. They want to sign you.’ So that’s kind of how that went. Just right timing, I would say.”
No kidding. The Bears had previously worked Ogletree out but chose not to sign him at the time. Things took a turn week when they lost two linebackers to health issues. Josh Woods to a quad strain and Christian Jones to the COVID-19 list. The fact that happened right around the same time that he pays a casual visit to Halas Hall? Talk about the height of serendipity.
Subscribe to the BFR Youtube channel and ride shotgun with Dave and Ficky as they break down Bears football like nobody else.
Alec Ogletree seems like he was meant to be a Bear
Not just because of this incredible sequence of events. There is also the fact he went to school at Georgia. Bears GM Ryan Pace has developed a strong taste for players from that program. See Roquan Smith, Leonard Floyd, and Javon Wims for some examples. Then there is the fact that Ogletree seems to love intercepting Chicago QBs. Aside from the six he already has in camp, he had another three in 2018 and 2019 when his New York Giants played the Bears in the regular season.
The truth is the guy can play. He probably shouldn’t have been available as long as he was. He’s still not too old and was a productive player two years ago. His coverage skills clearly haven’t diminished. If the Bears were looking for a perfect backup to Smith and Danny Trevathan? They could do a lot worse than Alec Ogletree. Together with Jones, that would make for a great four-man position group.
Much better than last season.
The key moving forward will be seeing if he can further his value in the eyes of the coaching staff. He is off to a good start but there is still a long way to go. Ogletree said he’d be more than willing to play special teams if that improved his odds of making the roster. This isn’t something he did a lot in previous years. This sort of team-first mentality won’t hurt his odds.