When the Chicago Bears made their initial 53-man roster we did an initial review, but even then we noted that it was a useless exercise because things would quickly change again. Boy, did they. The Bears added six players via waiver claims, so things did shake up on the back end of the roster.
We will highlight what looks different as we review the current 53-man roster.
Quarterback (2): Justin Fields, Trevor Siemian
This remains the same.
Running back (4): David Montgomery, Khalil Herbert, Trestan Ebner, Khari Blassingame
No changes here, although Darrynton Evans is on the practice squad.
Tight end (4): Cole Kmet, Ryan Griffin, Jake Tonges, Trevon Wesco
The first big change as Trevon Wesco is in. James O’Shaughnessy did not make the initial 53, but we thought he may circle back after a player gets placed on IR. Instead, it was a new name in Wesco.
Wide receiver (6): Darnell Mooney, Byron Pringle, Velus Jones, Equanimeous St. Brown, Dante Pettis, N’Keal Harry
Tajae Sharpe was placed on the IR, ending his season. N’Keal Harry is currently on the active roster which is interesting.
Offensive line (9): Braxton Jones, Cody Whitehair, Lucas Patrick, Riley Reiff, Larry Borom, Teven Jenkins, Sam Mustipher, Alex Leatherwood, Ja’Tyre Carter
The team swapped out Zach Thomas for Alex Leatherwood. They are hoping that Thomas can revert back to the practice squad, as they currently have one spot open.
Defensive line (4): Justin Jones, Angelo Blackson, Armon Watts, Mike Pennel
In comes Armon Watts and out goes Khiyris Tonga. Tonga was a Ryan Pace draft pick, while Watts has three years of rotational defensive work. This is the clearest upgrade of them all.
Edge (5): Robert Quinn, Trevis Gipson, Al-Quadin Muhammad, Dominique Robinson, Kinglsey Jonathan
The Chicago Bears added a fifth edge rusher into the mix with Kingsley Jonathan. They lost an off-of-the-ball linebacker in the process.
Linebacker (5): Roquan Smith, Nicholas Morrow, Matt Adams, Jack Sanborn, Sterling Weatherford
The team waived Caleb Johnson and cut Joe Thomas. They added Sterling Weatherford back, then also added an additional pass rusher with Jonathan.
Cornerback (6): Jaylon Johnson, Kyler Gordon, Kindle Vildor, Lamar Jackson, Josh Blackwell, Jaylon Jones
In comes Josh Blackwell, while Duke Shelley is out the door. This is a rookie UDFA coming in for a Ryan Pace draft pick.
Safety (5): Jaquan Brisker, Eddie Jackson, DeAndre Houston-Carson, Dane Cruikshank, Elijah Hicks
No changes
ST (3): Cairo Santos, Trenton Gil, Patrick Scales
These players are locked into the Chicago Bears roster.