2. Joe Thomas
During training camp, there was a lot of buzz around the name Joe Thomas, as he was stepping in for Roquan Smith often. When Smith returns, there is going to be a competition between Thomas and Matt Adams for the third linebacker role next to Smith and Nicholas Morrow.
Still, whether he starts or not, the veteran is going to make the team because he is a trusted special teams asset. While Thomas was not the highest-graded special teamer, he did lead the Chicago Bears in tackles from the special teams unit.
When the team threw their starters out there for the entire first half we saw that Thomas was a starter across the board on special teams. He was probably already a lock, but this cleared things up for sure. Joe Thomas is making the Chicago Bears roster and will be a special teams starter.