Chicago Bears: 3 questions that still must be answered

Is CB2 a disaster in the making?

Similar to Kyle Long, Prince Amukamara was a salary cap casualty this offseason. The former 19th overall pick in the 2011 draft by the New York Giants came to the Chicago Bears before the 2017 season on a one-year deal. He was rewarded with a three-year, $27 million contract extension.

However, he regressed considerably last year, allowing a 66.2 completion percentage and a quarterback rating of 105.2; both were significant jumps from 2018. And given his projected salary for 2020, it made sense to cut ties with him.

The Chicago Bears will carry a dead cap of just $1 million this year, but wasted little time in finding a replacement for him. Both Tre Roberson and Artie Burns were added to the secondary in what figures to be a three-man competition along with Kevin Toliver.

Roberson is a converted cornerback after not being drafted as a quarterback. He spent the last two years playing in the Canadian Football League and recorded a combined 95 tackles and ten interceptions, including seven last season. The problem here is it’s difficult to project how that will translate to the NFL.

Burns will be just 25 years old when the 2020 season begins. He’s played sparingly so far in his career with the Pittsburgh Steelers but did start at 16 games of the 2017 season. That year, he recorded one interception and 13 pass deflections to go along with 54 tackles. Advanced stats for 2018 reveal that he allowed a 64.0 completion percentage and a quarterback rating of 143.2 while whiffing on 8.3 percent of his tackles.

Toliver likely has an inside track on the starting gig right now, but the Bears need to consider further upgrading the position. They are set with Kyle Fuller on the opposite side, but they cannot have a reincarnated version of Amukamara this year at CB2. The defense took a step backward last year, and this was a big reason why.