Benny Sieu-USA TODAY Sports
It’s early in training camp but the Bears have already begun to shuffle the roster around to both fill injury holes and potentially add some quality depth this season. There are going to be a few moves every week as fringe players get culled from the roster and training camp casualties from other teams are brought in for a look. I’ll be recapping all the Bears training camp roster moves around once a week or so. Here is a quick recap of the Bears transactions over the first week of camp:
– The Bears released priority UDFA James Dunbar, a G/T out of TCU. Dunbar (6’5, 311) is an athletic, versatile O-lineman who played both guard and tackle in college. Coming out of TCU he was viewed as a project with good size and athleticism, but sloppy technique and problems anchoring in pass pro. Apparently the Bears didn’t see enough from Dunbar in OTAs and the first week of camp. Dunbar’s roster spot is still open, so I expect the Bears to bring in someone else soon.
– The Bears also released DE Jamil Merrill out of Rutgers. Merrill was an undrafted free agent who was invited to both Bears mini-camps and signed after the 2nd one. Merrill was a 3-4 OLB at Rutgers who was attempting to become an undersized (6’2, 248) pass-rush DE with the Bears. Merrill was considered a long-shot due to a lack of size and strength for the DE position.
– The Bears signed G/C Dylan Gandy to replace Merrill on the roster. Gandy (32) is a 9-year vet who was originally a 4th round pick by the Colts in the 2005 draft. He played 3 years with the Colts, starting 13 games and earning a Super Bowl ring in 2006. After a brief stint with the Broncos, Gandy played for the Lions for the last 5 years and appeared in 78 games with 5 starts. Gandy has the ability to play both guard and center, is durable and could provide solid depth for the Bears on the interior line. He also has experience on special teams and earned a positive grade (1.4) from PFF last season.