Chicago Bears: The one player who may have saved his 2021 season

The Chicago Bears had one player who may have saved his 2021 season tonight versus the Tennesee Titans. The Bears found a way to win a game I did not think they had a chance to win. With Tennessee dealing with multiple players unable to play due to COVID-19 protocols, the Chicago Bears squeaked out a 27-24 victory over the Titans.

If you were looking to make a bet, this would have been a push as the Bears were favored by three while on the road in Tennessee. I did not have faith in the Bears winning this one and thought they’d lose 28-17. I was clearly wrong and this is why predicting preseason games can be very difficult.

There was one player who came away with more than half of the Chicago Bears points and it was not Justin Fields or Nick Foles. Nope, it was the unthinkable — Jesper Horsted. Jesper Horsted was able to come away with three touchdowns in this game. His final touchdown that led to the hat-trick was a fantastic one-handed catch going across the middle and then down the sideline.

There was a penalty on the play, but it was a personal foul (roughing the passer) on the defense. The touchdown stood and Jesper Horsted finished with his third touchdown to put the Chicago Bears up 27-24. Horsted caught all five of his targets for 104 yards and three touchdowns.

Going into this game, I had Jesper Horsted as the TE5 on this team and my projections only had the Chicago Bears keeping four tight ends this year. Well, with J.P. Holtz not able to be on the field due to a chest injury, Jesper Horsted should have played his way onto the final roster in my opinion.

Typically, you don’t have many players fighting for the final roster spots at this point. However, the upside of Horsted seems greater to me than the upside of Holtz. What might keep Holtz on the team over Horsted is his blocking ability both on the line and as a lead blocker out of the backfield. With the emergence of Jesse James though, I think James could be that player (along with Cole Kmet at times), while the team holds onto Horsted.

If Horsted does not make the final roster, he might not last on the Bears practice squad if they look to place him there. The product out of Princeton has proven he has the ability to make plays at times and with some added opportunities maybe can make up for that horrible fumble in 2019 that could have helped the Bears beat the Packers and potentially push for a back-to-back playoff appearance.