The Chicago Bears have arrived at roster cut-down day. It’s not an easy day for players that get told they’re not good enough to be on an NFL roster.
It’s tough for the coaches, too.
“We’ll have some good conversations on that and see how that unfolds, but a lot of big decisions to be made in the morning,” Bears coach Ben Johnson said. “It’s always a tough time of the preseason just because you know it’s coming around the corner here. So, we’ll enjoy our plane ride home as a 90-man crew one last time.”
The Bears have begun to make those decisions. We’re tracking every single move the Bears make on roster cut-down day.
Chicago Bears roster cuts
Released the following players:
RB Salvon Ahmed
TE Stephen Carlson
DL Marcus Davenport
OL Wesley French
DL James Lynch
WR Scotty Miller
LB Jon Rhattigan
LB Jack Sanborn
Waived the following players:
WR Maurice Alexander
OL Kiran Amegadjie
OL Caden Barnett
WR Kaden Davis
LB Antonio Grier
OL Kyle Hergel
TE Qadir Ismail
DB Anthony Johnson
WR Omari Kelly
OL Jaren Kump
DL Jeremiah Martin
LB Wayne Matthews III
QB Miller Moss
OL Mason Murphy
DB Deantre Prince
WR J.P. Richardson
DB Marlen Sewell
DB Terell Smith
DB William Wright
Waived with an Injury Designation:
DB Beanie Bishop
LB Ruben Hyppolite II
DB Dontae Manning
Released with an Injury Settlement:
OL Jedrick Wills
Placed on Injured Reserve
RB Brittain Brown
LB Tony Fields
DB Jaylon Jones
WR Ray-Ray McCloud III
Placed on Reserve/Physically Unable to Perform:
DB Kyler Gordon
LB Noah Sewell
DL Shemar Turner
The big decision: Keep 6 WRs, or an extra TE
In the waning hours before final cuts are official, the Bears need to make one decision.
Do they keep six wide receivers, or do they keep four tight ends? Kaden Davis would be the sixth receiver in this instance. Or, do the Bears opt to keep Hayden Large who showed the ability to make blocks and the unsung plays Ben Johnson marvels at.
Bears cut Salvon Ahmed
In a bit of a surprising move, the Bears will reportedly waive running back Salvon Ahmed. He was in competition with Roschon Johnson for the No. 3 running back spot at
Johnson had plenty of work on Saturday, rushing for 52 yards and a touchdown on 15 carries. He also had two receptions on four targets.
Bears cut former third-round pick
After releasing Wills, the Bears also waived Kiran Amegadjie. According to CBS Sports, the Bears are parting with the 2024 third-round pick out of Yale who never found his footing in Chicago.
This leaves the Bears with Theo Benedet as the other offensive tackle behind Braxton Jones and Darnell Wright as Ozzy Trapilo continues to recover.
Bears release one left tackle
The Bears are releasing Jedrick Wills Jr., according to ESPN. He was one of the Bears’ left tackle candidates this preseason.
It remains to be seen what the Bears do with former third-round pick Kiran Amegadjie.
Bears WR room coming into shape
According to ESPN and The Ringer, the Bears have released two reserve wide receivers.
ESPN reported the Bears have cut Scotty Miller. Tom Pelissero reported the Bears waived JP Richardson. Both played in Saturday’s preseason finale.
This bodes well for training camp stud Kaden Davis, who earned first-team reps with the offense and impressed the coaches from a special teams point of view, too.
Bears to release Terell Smith
The Bears had a battle going for their final cornerback spot. They seemingly solved that by trading Dexter to the Falcons.
With Phillips on the roster, that took up the final cornerback spot. The Bears are releasing former fifth-round pick Terell Smith, according to the Chicago Tribune.
Smith had two pass breakups on Saturday night, but this might be more of a scheme-related move than anything. The Bears’ are trying to fit their roster to defensive coordinator Dennis Allen’s press-man scheme for the cornerback room, and this move indicates the Bears think Phillips is more suited for that role.
Bears trade Gervon Dexter Sr.
After Jordan van den Berg’s emergence in training camp and a handful of other moves, the Bears traded former second-round pick Gervon Dexter Sr. to Atlanta, according to ESPN and The Athletic.
The Bears acquired defensive back Clark Phillips III and a fifth-round pick in return for Dexter.
The Source: Information is from original FOX Chicago reporting and other news organizations like ESPN, the Chicago Tribune and more.