With the Chicago Bears getting their roster down to 53 men it was a bit surprising to see Desmond Trufant as a veteran who was let go. However, that name could have doubled with an even more tenured player in Danny Trevathan.
Trevathan started the Chicago Bears final preseason game, which was a bit surprising because most starters do not play. It was assumed that Trevathan was banged up in camp, and wanted to shake off some rust. According to Brad Biggs, there was a bit more to it than that.
Danny Trevathan showed the #Bears what they wanted to see in preseason finale after missing more than a week with knee soreness.
— Brad Biggs (@BradBiggs) August 31, 2021
Worth noting Alec Ogletree was held out of the game and releasing Trevathan (who has $3M in base salary guarantee) would create $482K cap savings.
Ogletree had excelled for the Bears this offseason. Trevathan had been banged up. The Bears were only going to save $482K, but if Trevathan was not healthy then it would have been worth it.
Why did Chicago Bears keep seven linebackers?
The Chicago Bears keeping seven linebackers brings more credence to this idea. The team liked what they saw out of Caleb Johnson, a rookie UDFA. They also know what they have in Josh Woods and Joel Iyiegbuniwe, and the two both took steps forward this offseason.
All of the sudden with Ogletree in the mix Trevathan started to look expendable.
We do not have to go into the realization that extending Trevathan when he was older and coming off an injury was questionable back when they did it.
Last season Trevathan really struggled. It seems as though he started to get his act together towards the end of the season, but it is clear that the Bears are showing some buyer’s remorse. With seven linebackers are they hoping to ship off Trevathan for a late pick?
There are still moves that the Chicago Bears have to make to continue to finalize their roster. Fans should keep in mind that when these moves occur that they have a lot of depth at linebacker, and are worried about the age, injury status, and play of Trevathan in 2020.