3 Chicago Bears who could lose their starting jobs during training camp

Chicago Bears Roster: Could Cole Kmet lose the top tight end spot?

This one is painful for me to write. Although the Chicago Bears will likely run many formations with two tight ends, it seems possible that Cole Kmet could lose out the starting spot to newcomer Robert Tonyan. Out of these three players, I do have to say that this one is the least likely in my mind. However, there are many reasons why it could happen.

Robert Tonyan knows Luke Getsy very well during his time with the Green Bay Packers. He is a very good red zone threat and we are already seeing a connection develop in that area with Justin Fields. Two years ago, Tonyan finished the year with 11 touchdowns and 586 yards. He struggled with injuries in 2021 and was unable to reach the same level of success last season as he had in 2020.

Cole Kmet is coming off a career year with seven touchdowns and 544 yards. He became one of Justin Fields' favorite targets in a year the Chicago Bears only threw the ball 377 times. That was the least amount of passing attempts in the league. To give it more perspective, the Falcons were second to last and threw the ball 415 times, or 38 more times. In fact, the 377 attempts are the fewest in the NFL since 2004. It's the first time since 2009 that a team threw the ball less than 400 times. Justin Fields has more weapons this year and it's possible Robert Tonyan overtakes Kmet's lead role.

I thought about throwing Khalil Herbert into the mix with D'Onta Foreman winning that job, but honestly, I don't think either has a strong footing on the starting spot just yet. Therefore, using Herbert in this context felt like a bit of a stretch. Do you think any of these players lose their starting jobs before the season starts? Leave us a comment on our Facebook page!