As the Chicago Bears get ready to take on the Green Bay Packers, they can only hope to play spoiler, as they will not be heading to the playoff this year. That means that plenty of players will be taking their final snaps as members of the Chicago Bears. Unfortunately, some players may have already taken their final snaps with the team.
4. The Chicago Bears are going to move on from D’onta Foreman
D’onta Foreman was a reliable addition this offseason, but it was clear when they drafted Roshon Johnson that he was in the long-term plans for the Chicago Bears. After a logjam did not work out in week one, the Bears made Foreman inactive for a few weeks.
When both Roschon Johnson and Khalil Herbert got hurt in week five, the Bears turned to Foreman from weeks six through 10. However, he suffered an injury and has not been able to get on track after that. In the last three games that he was active, Foreman totaled 23 rushes for 58 yards.
After a poor performance against the Cleveland Browns, he has not played in the past two weeks. He was a healthy inactive on Sunday against the Atlanta Falcons and was not happy. Khalil Herbert went for 135 yards and two touchdowns on 38 carries in the last two weeks. Johnson is much better in pass protection than both. There really is no role for Foreman.
D’onta Foreman will be inactive again and then test free agency. He will finish the year with 109 rushes for 425 yards.
3. Will Darnell Mooney suit up for the Chicago Bears?
Darnell Mooney has had a disastrous season for the Chicago Bears. He was coming back from season-ending ankle surgery, so it does make sense that he would struggle.
First, he was slow to get out of the gates. Then, Justin Fields got hurt. Then, he had to shift back to playing with Fields, and all the while, he was not looking back to his old self. Mooney missed week 17 with a concussion. The typical timeline for concussions this year is a missed game and then a return the following week. That may happen for Mooney, but as of Wednesday, he was still in concussion protocol.
He would have to clear on Thursday and get back to practice if he wants to play. The real question is how bad does he want to. He is concussed, his ankle hurts, and he has to play one more game with a team that is not invested in him during a season where he has no chemistry with his passer. There is little to gain for Mooney from playing and arguably more to lose in terms of his health.
If Mooney can clear protocol, you would expect him to play, but that is not a certainty. Perhaps both sides agree that it is best to move on, and we see a sneak preview of Tyler Scott stepping into his role for another game.
2. This could be it for Cody Whitehair on the Chicago Bears
The Chicago Bears benched Cody Whtiehair in week 11 after he has had a disastrous year with the team. Whitehair ended up popping back onto the field a bit in week 12, and then he played 48 snaps in relief of Teven Jenkins in week 15 before starting again in week 16 against the Arizona Cardinals.
Jenkins returned in week 17, and Whitehair returned to the bench. Still, his best game of the season was week 16; the Chicago Bears won in dominating fashion, and he was a big piece of it. It feels like that is a good way for Cody Whitehair to go out.
The Chicago Bears can and will release Cody Whitehair, and they will receive about $9M in cap space by doing so. The decision is a no-brainer, considering he cannot be trusted as a starter at this point. The question for him is whether he will catch on anywhere, let alone with this team next year.
1. The Chicago Bears will not re-sign Yannick Ngakoue
This one is already pretty official. There is a chance that Mooney and Whitehair play this weekend. At the very least, Whitehair will be active on Sunday. Yannick Ngakour will not. He was placed on the IR after suffering a season-ending ankle injury back in week 14. Ngakoue never had less than eight sacks in a season, and he recorded just four. He was not going put up eight, even with the injury. If he did, he was not going to earn it. His pass rush win rate dropped substantially this year compared to previous years.
Ngakoue has never played for the same team twice after his rookie contract. It is hard to see the Chicago Bears changing that trend, considering he had one of the worst seasons of his career. The Bears need to find an upgrade this year, and Ngakoue will find a new team that will give him as much as he wants salary-wise.