How would you rank the Chicago Bears entire 90-man roster?
With the long wait until the start of the regular season, it is a good time to stop and evaluate the Chicago Bears 90-man roster. In our last edition we look at players 90-86. We tried to break down the reasoning as their potential value to the Chicago Bears next season. With that said, 85-81
85. Andrew Trumbetti
From the list of priority UDFAs that came in 2018, we rated Trumbetti as number 13 out of 13. It is no surprise that he wound up low on the totem pole of our list for the potential 2018 season.
Trumbetti hails from Notre Dame and does have connections to Harry Hiestand. Hiestands Offensive line dueled with Trumbetti in the trenches every day at practice. And that is what Trumbetti is. A great practice player.
He is a hustle player, an every snap guy. He is going to provide something in August. It just will not be on the active roster.
Trumbetti did not get an invite to the combine and ran a 4.92 40 at his Pro Day. he is not overly athletic or strong. The two plays below against Texas can highlight where he lacks power and size to translate.
The left tackle is able to turn into Trumbetti and push him off of the ball to seal a lane up the middle.
Again, this time a tight end helps seal Trumbetti off of the edge.
Trumbetti is too slow to live on the edge and too weak to slide inside. He can bring intensity in practice, but will not last long for the Chicago Bears.
84. Nick Williams
Nick Williams has been in and out of the NFL since 2013. He was a seventh round pick for the Pittsburgh Steelers and spent his rookie contract as a low end roster player for them.
From there, he spent three years in a similar system with the Kansas City Chiefs. Nick Williams spent 2016 with the Miami Dolphins and was in camp with the Dolphins in 2017 as well. However, after being let go by the Dolphins as a last cut, he spent the season unsigned.
Now, he heads into Bears camp ready to compete for his job. However, Nick Williams is a true toss up with a player such as Andrew Trumbetti. Both are likely to get cut. While Trumbetti does not have a defined role, Nick Williams is clearly an interior lineman.
He is a veteran who can bring similar attributes to the practice field as Trumbetti. With that in mind he gets the nod, but it is not a big leap in competition.
No. 83 Bumni Rotimi
Rotimi is a former edge pass rusher from Old Dominion. He is another priority UDFA from the 2018 class. Rotimi had success at the lower level and caught the eye of scouts and talent evaluators. Enough so to get an invite to the NFL combine. At the combine he may have provided more questions than answers, though.
As shown below, for an edge rusher he looks to be too big and too slow to translate to the NFL. That is why the team is changing his position to an interior defensive lineman.
Still, the transition is not going to be easy. He shows to have size that may have helped him win at a smaller level, but he does not show matching athleticism. He is facing an uphill battle and is changing positions. It is not going to be easy for Bumni Rotimi. His versatility and size presents a bit more upside than options listed elsewhere. It brings some potential of a practice squad stash. However, the most likely outcome is that he struggles to see snaps in camp and misses the roster.
Number 82 Matt McCants
Matt McCants has maintained a career in the NFL since 2012 despite starting in just 3 NFL games. That is some staying power. He started his career playing with the New York Giants. He spent his first full season there and went into training camp the next year before being released. From there, he spent four seasons with the Oakland Raiders, from 2013-2016.
Ryan Pace and the Chicago Bears signed him to close out the 2016 season, but he did not take a snap. The Browns wound up re-signing him In 2017.
Now, he is back at Halas Hall. McCants, like most of the players in the early part of this list does not have much of a chance to compete for a roster spot. However, he is higher than some of the other players.
That comes almost directly down to his staying power in the NFL and his previous relationship in the organization. Pace clearly trusts his practice demeanor which does say more than some of the other players mentioned so far. Still, it would be news to hear him taking snaps over a player such as Bradley Sowell.
Number 81 Michael Joseph
Some might see this as a bit too low for Joseph, but this is our third priority UDFA from the 2018 season. Despite playing at a small school Michael Joseph was a three time first team all conference performer at Dubuque. He finished with seven interceptions in the past two seasons.
However, he was one of the small school players who did get an invite to the combine. From there, it is obvious to understand why he wound up being undrafted. He tested unathletic.
The best potential comparable is Ken Crawley in terms of athleticism. However, the big difference is size. Crawley has similar numbers at a smaller size. Nonetheless, it is tough to come from a small school such as Dubuque, test as unathletic as he did and make an impact in the NFL.
Related Story: Michael Joseph profile
On top of that, the team did has some solid pieces on the roster at cornerback. Kyle Fuller and Prince Amukamara were both extended. Bryce Callahan and Cre’Veon LeBlanc will be back, and the team re-signed Marcus Cooper and Kevin Toliver amongst other UDFA’s that will be mentioned later. Joseph does not quite bring the flare of a top 80 Bear heading into camp.