The Chicago Bears had been phasing Angelo Blackson out of the defense, and that may have finally hit the tipping point on Sunday. The team signed Andrew Brown from the Arizona Cardinals practice squad.
When you saw the decline in snaps from Blackson and the addition of Brown, you had to assume that the two were about to see their roles swap. What you did not know was that it would happen in just a few days.
Will Chicago Bears release Angelo Blackson?
Brown was signed on the Wednesday before the game. With about two days of practice, he out-snapped Blackson 23 to three. Considering Blackson has been on the roster all season and was not missing practice, while Brown just showed up this week, this is notable.
The Bears have been a team that has preached giving the longer-tenured players the first chances and letting the new faces get eased in slowly. That is not what happened at all in this situation.
It says less about Brown, who they scooped up off of a bad team’s practice squad, and says more about Blackson. Blackson must not be buying in. First, he lost his role to Armon Watts, but once that change happened, his snap rate cratered.
Now, he is replaced by someone signed a few days prior to the game. Blackson plays special teams, but on Sunday he was only on the field kick and field goal block units. Andrew Brown did not play any special teams snaps, but you would think that is something he will step into during the bye week.
If Blackson is only on two units and can get replaced there, and he is playing three to 10 snaps a game on defense as the fifth lineman, then he may as well get released.
The Chicago Bears are going to have to do plenty of roster maneuvering as the injuries continue, but also as players come back. They could play the roster game, take chances, and move players up or down, or the next time they need a roster spot, they can release Angelo Blackson.
Blackson has been here since Ryan Pace, he is out of the loop, and he has to be number 53 on the current 53-man roster.