NFL
By: Kristy Love
After a good training camp and preseason, the Chicago Bears cut the roster from 90 to 53 players. Let’s dive deeply into the depth chart for this upcoming season.
Quarterback
QB: Justin Fields, Tyson Bagent, Nathan Peterman
Justin Fields is entering his third year in the NFL and his second year under offensive coach Luke Gesty. This past season, Fields completion rate was 192/318, which equals 60.4%, seven touchdowns, and 2,242 yards. Fields also had 1,143 rushing yards, which he got the most rushing yards as a QB in the 2022 NFL Season. Currently, QB Michael Vick carries the title as most rushing yards as a QB with 6,109 yards. Fields came out earlier in the offseason, stating he would get 4000 yards in the 2023 NFL season.
Even though the Bears have not officially confirmed, it’s looking like Tyson Bagent will be backup QB #2 behind Justin Fields. For a deep dive on Tyson Bagent, refer back to my article. The Bears also have Nathan Peterman as the 3rd QB, due to the emergency quarterback rule in the NFL.
Running Back
Khalil Herbert, D’Onta Foreman, Roschon Johnson, Travis Homer, and at FB Khari Blasingame.
Khalil Herbert is entering his third year with the Bears and his first year as a starting running back. Herbert was back up and played behind former Chicago Bear David Montgomery. Herbert finished the season with 731 yards on 129 rushing attempts and four touchdowns this past season. Compared to his rookie season, in which he only had 433 yards. Khalil will get initial carries and snaps, and behind him is RB D’onta Foreman. He is suitable for the short yards, for example, 2nd and three or 3rd and short. On the third string, the Bears have rookie Roschon Johnson, Travis Homer, and fullback Khari Blasingame, who is considered a better pass catcher out of the bunch.
Wide Receiver
DJ Moore, Darnell Mooney, Chase Claypool, Tyler Scott, Equanimeous St. Brown, Velus Jones Jr, and Trent Taylor.
During the offseason, the Chicago Bears traded their first-round draft pick to the Carolina Panthers in exchange for WR DJ Moore and first-round picks. DJ Moore had 1000-plus yards in every season with the Carolina Panthers. The Bears had a desperate need to surround Fields with weapons around him, and with the Bears trading for Moore, this gives Fields the room to use his powerful arm in this upcoming season. The Bears showed what the season would look like when Fields connected with Moore during the preseason. In the preseason opener against the Tennessee Titans, Fields threw a screen pass to DJ Moore, and Moore ran the ball 62 yards in for the touchdown. During an interview, Fields and Moore discussed how they built chemistry together during the offseason.
Darnell Mooney is coming off a season-ending ankle injury he got in the 2022 season in week 12. Mooney struggled as he was promoted to WR 1 in the 2022 season, as he had a thriving season the year before. As the Bears got help at the WR 1 slot, Mooney is ready to roll, and his ankle injury is nonexistent in the 2023 season.
Chase Claypool was traded to the Bears mid-season from the Pittsburgh Steelers in the 2022 NFL season. Claypool has much to prove this coming season, and coming off a hamstring injury doesn’t help. Claypool played in 10 games with the Bears and had 140 yards. In an interview, Bears GM Ryan Poles stated that he feels confident and good about where Claypool is currently. He is also ready to go against the division rival Greenbay Packers in week one. Claypool can be utilized the best down in the red zone. He has a big body and can move the ball in to score.
Rookie Tyler Scott has the speed and flash to run routes and catch the ball deep. Things may not be better off-rip because he is a rookie; however, he can develop nicely, especially with help from Moore and Mooney. The Bears also added Equanimeous St. Brown on the squad Velus Jones Jr., and signed on Trent Taylor. Trent Taylor will be on special teams more than taking any snaps on the field. Taylor will be the Bears punt returner. He has 89 punt returns in his career with 9.7 yard on average, while Velus Jones Jr. average 7 yards per run. Will it look like Jones Jr. might be in jeopardy, Ryan Poles states they will work with him.
Tight End
Cole Kmet, Robert Tonyan, Mercedes Lewis
Cole Kmet had signed a four-year 50-million-dollar extension with the Bears at the start of training camp. Kmet lead led the Bears in receiving yards last season with 544 yards on 50 catches. Kmet also was able to score touchdowns, collecting seven touchdowns last season. As the Bears got more scoring help, expect Kmet to have a big season. Robert Tonyan is a good pass catcher as a TE, and veteran Mercedes Lewis is there to help with blocking, which is a great asset.
Offensive Line
Braxton Jones (LT), Larry Borom(LT), Cody Whitehair(LG), Dan Feeney(LG), Lucas Patrick (C), Nate Davis(RG), Ja’Tyre Carter(RG), and Darnell Wright(RT).
The Chicago Bears currently have eight offensive linemen on the roaster. While LG Teven Jenkins is injured, Cody Whitehair is at LG. The offensive line has improved from last season. However, it may not be as strong as it will be with injuries. The objective goal is to protect Fields. As they failed to do so in the 2022 season, improvements and drafting Darnell Wright as the ninth pick should give Fields much better protection. If the offensive line can hold up, they will help Fields become an MVP candidate for this upcoming season.
Defensive Line
Yannick Ngakoue (DE), Rashee Green (DE), Khalid Kareem (DE), Justin Jones (DT), Gervon Dexter Sr. (DT), Andrew Billings (DT), Zacch Pickens (DT), Demarcus Walker (DE), Dominique Robinson (DE)
The Bears made a splash in the offseason by signing the eight-year veteran who played for the Indianapolis Colts last season. Ngakoue is already familiar with Bears defensive coach Travis Smith, who was with the Los Vegas Raiders in 2021 with Ngakoue. Ngakoue, at a minimum, gets eight sacks a season. Rookie Gervon Dexter Sr was spotted with Yannick outside of practice working together. That will help with chemistry and strengthen the defense line to be much more powerful. The line may be the weakest spot on the team; however, they have pieces to improve them.
Linebackers
T.J. Edwards, Tremaine Edmunds, Noah Sewell, Jack Sanborn, Dylan Cole
The linebacker slot is solid this upcoming season. The LB position is led by Tremaine Edmunds, who spent the first five years of his career with the Buffalo Bills. Edmunds, who stands at 6’5 250, started in every game he played (74). Edmunds collected 565 tackles, 32 tackles for losses, 6.5 sacks, five interceptions, and two forced fumbles. He also was able to get at least 100 tackles per season.
T.J Edwards signed a three-year deal with the Chicago Bears during the offseason. He had a career-high with the Philadelphia Eagles, getting 159 tackles. During his three years with the Eagles, Edwards started 12 games a season.
Cornerback
Jaylon Johnson, Kyler Gordon, Tyrique Stevenson, Terell Smith, Josh Blackwell, Jaylon Jones
Jaylon Johnson is entering his fourth year with the Bears, and he started in 39 games, registering 125 tackles and 31 pass breakups. Jaylon Johnson allows an average completion percentage of 58.3% on more than 200 targets. The Bears drafted Kyler Gordon, and he was struggling early on. Toward the end of the season, Gordon got three interceptions. He was the second player on the team to have that many interceptions. Gordon was moved inside the slot, and once he was moved, he only missed three percent of his tackles. Come the 2023 season, Gordon will start as an inside slot corner.
This group of guys has potential this coming season. They are very young and may have a bit of growing pains. However, there is nothing they can not learn from.
Safety
Eddie Jackson, Jaquan Brisker, Elijah Hicks, and Quindell Johnson.
Safety Eddie Jackson is entering his seventh year with the Bears as a starter. Last season, Jackson got 80 tackles (59 tackles were solo), four interceptions, six passes defended, and two forced fumbles in 12 games in the 2022 season. Jaquan Brisker is ready to explode this coming season as he’s coming off an impressive rookie year. Last season, Brisker got 104 tackles, four sacks, three interceptions, a forced fumble, and a forced recovery in 15 games he played. With revamps to the defense, Jaquan Brisker will be able to be that much more effective during the season. The safety position is probably one of the Bears’ best slots on this team. Everyone is solid and produces good numbers.
As the Bears round up their 53-man roster, they got Kicker Cairo Santos, Punter Trenton Gill, and Long snapper Patrick Scales.
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