5 Chicago Bears with most to gain in preseason Week 1

2. Joel Iyiegbuniwe

Chuck Pagano may want to get used to his starters more than Nagy at this point. Still, in week one of the preseason, it would be a shocker if Roquan Smith and Danny Trevathan saw any snaps in the first game of the preseason.

This should mean that Iyiegbuniwe is going to start next to Nick Kwiatkowski. This is an under the radar roster battle that could have some implications. Kwiatkowski is due to get a new contract at the end of the season. With starter experience, there have been trade talks, but at the same time, there have been ideas that an extension to be special teams and depth asset.

However, if  Iyiegbuniwe can step into that role, though it makes it much easier to make the Kwiatkowski decision, Iyiegbuniwe was drafted for his special teams’ prowess but is a bit undersized. He did not add much help on the defensive side of the ball last season.

A step forward in year two would go a long way for a player that could be trusted in the defense. Iyiegbuniwe will get plenty of snaps this preseason and will be worth watching from the start of week one.