We had so much fun doing our Countdown to Kickoff series last season that we decided to do it again. In case you’re new to the series, we’ll do a roster preview as we count down the days until the Chicago Bears September 7th season opener against the Buffalo Bills.
We’re Lee Pegues days away from the start of the Bears season. Don’t know how many days that is? How about if I said we’re Izzy Idonije days away? Ahh, 71, now you get it.
The rookie defensive tackle out of East Carolina adopted #71 when the Bears let Izzy go following minicamp. The Bears signed Pegues as an undrafted free agent out of East Carolina, where he started 27 of 43 games over four seasons. The 6’2″ 291 pounder recorded 102 tackles, including 13 tackles for loss and 5 and a half sacks. With all of the additions and changes the Bears made to rebuild the defensive line, Pegues is a longshot to make the roster, but let’s face it, they were pulling guys off the street to play, so you never know.
As for Izzy, like a lot of Bears fans, I was excited to see them bring him back after he spent a season in Detroit. Izzy had a rough year in Motown in 2013, where he only notched 11 tackles and a half a sack. The Bears brought him back during the offseason most likely as an insurance policy, but after they were able to add more youngsters to the D-line, Izzy became dispensable. I hope he catches on somewhere or at least gets to go out of his terms. He’s one of the classiest guys out there.
Be on the lookout for our Countdown to Kickoff series as we continue to work our way to the season opener on September 7th. We’re 71 days from kickoff. Are you ready???