Bears Make Final Cuts to Reach 53-Man Limit

Mandatory Credit: Bradley Leeb-USA TODAY Sports

Yesterday the Bears made most of their moves and got down to 58 players on their roster, leaving them 5 more moves to make to reach the 53-man limit.  They took their sweet time getting the last moves completed, which makes me believe that maybe they were trying to trade wide receiver Earl Bennett and when they failed to reach a deal, they made their last moves.

There were two injury settlements that we knew were coming and a third that we didn’t expect.  Corey Brandon, who suffered a fractured ankle and ligament injury in the waning moments of the last preseason game reached an injury settlement with the Bears.

Also waived/injured was safety Brandon Hardin, who was a third round pick by Phil Emery in the 2012 draft.  If Hardin clears waivers, and I can’t imagine why he wouldn’t, he’ll revert to the Bears’ Injured Reserve, keeping him off the field for his third straight season.  Hardin missed his senior season before being drafted by the Bears.  In the first preseason game of 2012, Hardin suffered a neck injury which pushed him to IR all of last season.

The third injury settlement was with DT Corvey Irvin.

The final two cuts weren’t terribly surprising.  Linebacker JT Thomas, who had a nice preseason and might have been able to sneak in on the merits of his fine special teams play, will be placed on waivers.

Wide receiver Terrence Toliver was also waived by the team.  Toliver had a nice preseason finale and could find his way back onto the practice squad if he clears waivers.

Keep an eye on the waiver wire as the final guys who made the roster could still be on the move if the Bears find someone on the street that could help them immediately.