How would you rank the Chicago Bears 90-man roster heading into training camp?
Ranking 90-86 85-81 80-76 75-71 70-66 65-61 60-56 55-50
45. Daniel Brown
The Chicago Bears brought Daniel Brown in late into the 2016 season. Brown got to see the field a bit but did not make a huge impact. In 2017, he served as the backup to Zach Miller. When Miller got hurt against New Orleans, Brown began to see the field some.
Still, he had just 13 receptions for 129 yards. Brown is going to be entering year three with the Chicago Bears competing to be the teams fourth tight end. He should have a decent shot, as he profiles as a decent backup to Trey Burton. If anything were to happen, he would be the best equipped to take on that role.
Daniel Brown is not necessarily a slot wide receiver. He is not necessarily a tight end either though. Matt Nagy tends to favor versatility, and the versatility that Brown brings to move around to a couple of spots should catch his eye.
In a best-case scenario, Brown makes the team as a fourth tight end and does not see the field much. However, there is a world where Brown is relied to make a real impact on offense as well.
44. Sherrick McManis
Sherrick McManis is now entering his seventh season with the Chicago Bears. We know exactly what he is. Still, there is a reason that he is going to stand around in the 40s as far as most valued players, and likely has for the past six seasons.
Sherrick McManis is a special teamer. That is the extent to what he provides to the Chicago Bears. He is an excellent special teamer at that. One of the better in the league, and a captain of the team because of it.
However, the team has made sure to keep enough defensive backs on the roster that it would have to be a doomsday scenario for Sherrick McManis to see the field on defense.
The Bears will likely keep five cornerbacks ahead of him. They may even sign a cornerback off of the practice squad to stick in ahead of him if tough times were to come. They do not want him on the field on defense.
His reliability and special teams value push him up this high on the list. The fact that he is a liability on defense pushes him down this low overall.
43. Chase Daniel
There are essentially two ways to look at Chase Daniel and his value to the team. The first is the most realistic way in which he will provide his value. That is in the meeting rooms as a backup.
Chase Daniel knows the Matt Nagy offense. He has spent the majority of his career using the same terminology and preaching the same ideals. He knows this offense more than Mitchell Trubisky does.
That presents value. He is going to help groom up the young quarterback. He is going to teach the quarterback the terminology like slang and the team are going to push each other to grow in this offense. Daniel knows his job is to prepare starters and he does it well.
However, he is not going to get ranked higher because if Trubisky were to get hurt, the team would be in big trouble. Chase Daniel has not shown anything on tape worth getting excited about his prospects as an NFL quarterback. While he is great from Monday through Saturday, his value would diminish if he was called onto the field on Sunday.
It is a tough position and player to nail down in these rankings. However, without much on the field value, it is tough to argue for him to rank much higher.
42. Jonathan Anderson
Jonathan Anderson is entering year four with the Chicago Bears. He was a great UDFA find from the very class that Ryan Pace brought in. Jonathan Anderson has suited up in 31 games over the past three seasons and has started in just three.
Anderson is a linebacker who can play off of the ball and off of the edge. He is listed currently as an outside linebacker. However, after playing in 313 defensive snaps as a rookie, he has played in just 51 snaps over the past two seasons.
So, even listed as an outside linebacker if he makes the roster it is the fifth outside linebacker. Why would he make it and why does his value rest so high? Special teams.
Anderson has turned into a special teams demon and has gotten himself on the field in almost every situation. Over the past two seasons, he has played in 162 and 241 snaps. That is 76.8% and 75.3% of the total special team’s snaps. There is no doubt that he now has a specific value to this team.
Anderson is younger than McManis and is at a position that is much more open for opportunity. Anderson presents a specific value and has a strong chance of making the team because of it.
41. John Timu
John Timu is in a similar spot to Jonathan Anderson on the roster. Both were UDFA’s from the first Ryan Pace class, and both are entering their fourth season on the roster. The two are combination linebackers who can move inside or out depending on the depth. Anderson is listed as outside, while Timu is listed inside.
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Anderson has played more special teams snaps over the past three seasons. While Timu played more overall as a rookie, he only played 47% and 67% of the special teams snaps over the past two seasons.
However, the big difference in the favor of Timu is defensive snaps. If the Bears need a linebacker, inside or out, they were calling on Timu before Anderson. Last season Timu played 136 snaps and played 185 the season before that. Most of those snaps have come from the inside linebacker spot, but overall the team has been trusting Timu more overall.
Anderson is likely going to make the team with his special team’s value. However, Timu could make the team because the Bears trust him if things were to go wrong. This is where he gets the slight nod.