On Saturday evening, the Chicago Bears hosted the Cincinnati Bengals in one of those preseason contests that everyone struggles to get through. Despite the starters getting time in the first quarter, there wasn’t much to write home about, which can be both good and bad. With one more game remaining in the preseason and roster cuts to follow shortly after, the next seven days are going to be hectic for every team around the league. Before we officially turn the page on a tough-to-watch game in Cincinnati, let’s dive into five thoughts following the Bears’ 27-9 preseason loss.
1\. **Despite a practice last Sunday designed for starters and the joint practice in Cincy, the Bears opted to give their starters a brief look on Saturday night.**
While it may not be easy to remember, head coach Ben Johnson and the coaching staff followed a similar script in last year’s preseason slate. They had an eventful day of joint practices, followed by the starting offense playing roughly 15 snaps. Although things didn’t go the same this season, quarterback Caleb Williams and the offense were on the field for eight plays, picking up 33 yards, and despite a 1st and 10 from the Bengals’ 17, they settled for a field goal before giving their starters the rest of the night (and likely preseason) off.
All in all, there wasn’t much to write home about on either side of the ball. The defense is more banged up, which led to fewer projected Week 1 starters, but once the starters were set, it was a 3-3 game. The offense showed flashes, including Williams completing his first two passes for 28 yards, before finishing the drive with three straight incompletions, one of which was batted down.
For the first time in what feels like forever, there wasn’t much for the Bears to prove during the preseason. As we’ve learned over the years, it’s rare for much to translate over from the preseason to the regular season anyway. It’s easy to live in the moment, and for that, we’ve seen plenty of takes surrounding Williams’ miss to Colston Loveland near the end zone. That being said, this was more about the process of getting ready for a game, and much less about the meaningless results of a game that doesn’t count in the record books. While I’ve got no problem with each unit’s starters getting a series, I hope that Saturday night will be about the bottom end of the roster.
2\. **With Braxton Jones back healthy and a switch-up at practice last week, it appears that the left tackle battle is settled for now.**
Whether that’s a good or a bad thing is yet to be determined, but barring Ozzy Trapilo being physically ready to play Week 1, the only viable starting option seems to be Jones. Coming off the heels of a rough preseason performance last Saturday, it’s fair for fans to be a little skeptical. Admittedly, I am too. Jones’ lack of an anchor continues to be an issue in his pass sets, and despite him being healthy, he doesn’t appear to have the same lateral movement that he did before last season.
The bigger issue is that the competition behind him has been about as bad as it gets. Barring a surprise, Kiran Amegadjie’s three-year tenure in Chicago is most likely coming to an end. Despite the upside gamble, it seems clear that Jedrick Wills Jr. is simply not back to 100% physically, and I’m not sure the Bears can afford to wait around on him to get there. Because of that, the coaching staff swapped both players to the right side, while giving Theo Benedet one last crack at the left tackle job. The key is that the team made it pretty clear they had little interest in seeing Benedet on the left side again, which should tell you everything you need to know about how they feel about Amegadjie and Wills.
The general expectation is still that Trapilo will end up on Injured Reserve for the first four-to-six games of the season. While they might disappoint some, getting him back for any time this season should be viewed as a plus. The goal needs to be getting him into physical and mental shape to play football and do it at a higher level than Jones (or whoever has the job by then). Assuming Trapilo isn’t on the active roster, it’s looking more and more like the Bears might keep just nine offensive linemen, including just three tackles on the final roster.
3\. **Three roster bubble names I feel good about making the team.**
1. iOL Jordan McFadden
2. WR Kaden Davis
3. LB Jack Sanborn
Heading into camp, I wasn’t sure how many offensive linemen the Bears would keep and how many of them would be tackles. Given how that competition has played out, it seems entirely possible the team could keep nine players on the depth chart and only one at tackle (Benedet). If so, that leaves Logan Jones, Luke Newman, and likely McFadden as the final three to claim spots. With Thuney not playing last Saturday, it was once again McFadden receiving the nod at left guard. That speaks volumes about where the team sees him, especially after their decision in the divisional round back in January.
Davis is a player I had firmly on the outside looking in as camp opened up. Still, considering his special teams value and his playmaking ability in almost every practice session, it feels like a worthwhile argument that he’s done more to earn a final roster spot than anyone else on the depth chart around him. Although I wouldn’t consider him a lock, I’d consider him the favorite heading into the final week of preseason action.
Finally, we have Sanborn, who is in his second stint with the Bears. Originally, he was projected as a fringe player because of his lack of speed. That said, injuries and a lack of standout play around him have Sanborn firmly in the driver’s seat for one of the final spots on the depth chart come next Sunday. Athletically, he profiles similarly to TJ Edwards at this point in his career, and while I have concerns about him starting more than a game or two, Sanborn also brings quality special teams value.
4\. **Three roster bubble names that I don’t think will be on the roster come Sunday night.**
1. CB Terell Smith
2. DT Kentavius Street
3. WR Scotty Miller
Every year before the start of training camp, everyone puts out projected 53-man rosters, and in the moment, it feels so “easy,” right? Projecting injuries is impossible, which makes this exercise like throwing darts at a dartboard. Still, even then, you assume most players will survive the preseason and, in the end, the obvious parts of the roster will pan out the way you expected.
For the Bears, there might not be many surprises, but with five players still on the PUP list and others like Coby Bryant slated to miss a large chunk of the regular season, it gets a little more interesting. That being said, players like Smith, who haven’t proven their ability to stay on the field when it matters, might just find themselves on the outside looking in on Sunday. Cornerback is a tough spot, especially with the status of Gordon and Tyrique Stevenson (week-to-week) still up in the air heading into Week 1. That’s why keeping players like Smith, who have struggled to stay on the field since they were drafted, might not make a lot of sense.
Moving down the list, Street was signed early in the offseason and projected as a bubble player, even if I would have classified him “leaning in” when camp opened. That said, there hasn’t been much to write home about, and with the emergence of sixth-round rookie Jordan van den Berg and even veteran James Lynch, Street feels like a player that might be easier to slide on the practice squad for some additional depth.
Finally, there’s Miller. I would have probably deemed him the “favorite” for the WR6 job, although I wasn’t convinced they would end up keeping six on the final roster. As training camp and the preseason have played out, the idea of keeping six is more plausible, especially if they keep nine offensive linemen. That said, both Davis and Maurice Alexander have outplayed him during the preseason, and could each provide more immediate special teams value. Like Street, don’t be surprised to see Miller land on the practice squad.
5\. **With the league’s single cut-down day set for this Sunday, the Bears will have plenty of decisions to make on injured players in the coming days. They’ll also be on a tighter timeline than 30 other teams,**
By Sunday at 6:00 p.m. ET, all 32 NFL teams must be down to 53 players on their active rosters. That doesn’t mean the 53 players they keep on Sunday are the ones they are stuck with heading into Week 1, but it’s a checkpoint that lets the league start the waiver wire process, along with teams setting their 16-player practice squads on Monday.
In past seasons, teams have had at least two days between their final preseason games and the deadline to cut down their roster. This season, the league voted to move the date up, leaving both the Bears and the Titans with less than 24 hours between the end of their game on Saturday night and the deadline on Sunday evening. The Bears are one of just four teams playing on Saturday, and for some reason, they are the final preseason game slated for a Saturday night standalone.
To complicate matters more, the team still has five players on the Physically Unable to Perform (PUP) list, including CB Kyler Gordon, S Elijah Hicks, DE Shemar Turner, LB Keyshaun Elliott, and LB Noah Sewell. Outside of Sewell, the expectation was that the remaining four players on this list would be ready to go for the regular season. With Week 1 under three weeks away and little update on any of these players, it’s fair to wonder how many will be taken off the list and ready to contribute early in the season. Add Trapilo into this conversation as a likely IR candidate, and there’s a good chance the Bears will be carrying multiple additional players that weren’t expected when the team opened camp last month.
Buckle up, Bears fans. The next week-plus is going to be filled with plenty of moves. Most will be expected, but considering their lack of depth in certain areas, don’t be surprised to see this front office get creative and add a few players via low-cost trades.
See More: