Get updates delivered to you daily. Free and customizable.
Athlon Sports
Bears roster projection: Here's what the 2024 team will look like Week 1
By Tommy Wiita,
18 hours ago
The Chicago Bears are getting closer to putting their 2024 roster together as final roster cuts will be made by Tuesday afternoon.
The Bears' roster is full of talented players and looking to turn their fortunes behind, claim their first winning season since 2018 and make their first playoff appearance since 2020.
Here's a 53-man roster prediction when roster cuts are finalized Tuesday afternoon.
Williams is, to no surprise, the starter heading into the season with Bagent playing the backup role. The question that remains is whether head coach Matt Eberflus keeps two or three quarterbacks on the roster. The expectation is that he keeps two and attempts to bring back another on the practice squad. Brett Rypien could be brought back with his experience or Austin Reed's youth could be something to build on in the future.
RB
D'Andre Swift
Khalil Herbert
Roschon Johnson
Velus Jones Jr.
Travis Homer
Khari Blasingame
The Bears have a solid running back room that features solid depth from the first to third spots alone. Jones is getting a roster spot after switching to tailback from wide receiver and provides some versatility that only helps Chicago potentially strengthen further its weapons on offense. Homer will make the team after undrafted rookie Ian Wheeler tore his ACL in the final preseason game.
WR
DJ Moore
Keenan Allen
Rome Odunze
Tyler Scott
DeAndre Carter
The trio of Moore, Allen and Odunze will be carrying the workload at the receiver position with Scott proving himself worthy of the fourth spot on the depth chart. Carter makes the roster based on the need for an experienced punt returner and Jones switching his position to running back.
TE
Cole Kmet
Gerald Everett
Marcedes Lewis
This room may have already been set to go even before training camp began, as long as everyone remained healthy before the regular season. Kmet will get the lion's share of targets but Everett and Lewis provide even more of a punch for offensive coordinator Shane Waldron's two-tight-end sets.
OL
Braxton Jones
Teven Jenkins
Darnell Wright
Ryan Bates
Nate Davis
Coleman Shelton
Matt Pryor
Kiran Amegadjie
Bill Murray
The starting offensive line is expected to be Jones, Jenkins, Wright, Bates or Davis, and Shelton. Bates is able to fill in at center and guard but will be "week to week" for the time being, opening up opportunities for others. Pryor provides some flexibility as he can play tackle and guard. Murray gets a roster spot after Larry Borom suffered an injury in the final preseason game.
DL
Montez Sweat
Andrew Billings
Gervon Dexter
DeMarcus Walker
Austin Booker
Zacch Pickens
Darrell Taylor
Chris Williams
Dominique Robinson
The defensive line is a position that the Bears have put an emphasis on — particularly the edge rusher position — after ranking as one of the worst in the NFL last year. Sweat, Billings, Dexter and Walker are expected to start while Pickens, Booker, Taylor, Williams and Robinson will supply the depth. Taylor and Williams are newcomers via recent trades and Booker has impressed Eberflus this preseason. Daniel Hardy isn't mentioned here as Eberflus recently stated that Robinson is likely to be involved in a rotational role off the edge, likely solidifying his role.
The Bears have a great group of linebackers, headlined by Edmunds. Along with the two-time Pro Bowler, Edwards and Sanborn will start for Chicago with Sewell and Ogbongbemiga rounding out the group. Ogbongbemiga gets the nod over Micah Baskerville for the final spot due to his versatility and production on special teams.
CB
Jaylon Johnson
Kyler Gordon
Tyrique Stevenson
Terell Smith
Josh Blackwell
Jaylon Jones
Headlined by one of — if not the best — cornerback in the NFL, this group is potentially one of the better, deeper units in the league. Johnson, Gordon, Stevenson and Smith have locked up the top four spots and Blackwell and Jones are projected to round out the group. Even though Reddy Steward showed out in his final preseason game, he doesn't make the cut here, along with Greg Stroman. It's most likely some of the hardest decisions the Bears have to make heading into the regular season.
S
Kevin Byard
Jaquan Brisker
Jonathan Owens
Elijah Hicks
Tarvarius Moore
Another talented group, the safety position will feature Byard instead of Eddie Jackson and Brisker will start alongside him. Owens and Hicks will likely be the go-to reserves and Moore gets the final spot due to a great showing in the final preseason game. Adrian Colbert is the odd man out.
K/P/LS
Cairo Santos (K)
Tory Taylor (P)
Patrick Scales (LS)
Santos is entering his fifth season with the Bears. Chicago drafted Taylor in the fourth round as he's expected to elevate the punting game for the team. As for Scales, he's been with the Bears since 2015.
Aug 22, 2024; Kansas City, Missouri, USA; Chicago Bears running back Travis Homer (20) runs the ball against the Kansas City Chiefs during the first half at GEHA Field at Arrowhead Stadium.
Get updates delivered to you daily. Free and customizable.
It’s essential to note our commitment to transparency:
Our Terms of Use acknowledge that our services may not always be error-free, and our Community Standards emphasize our discretion in enforcing policies. As a platform hosting over 100,000 pieces of content published daily, we cannot pre-vet content, but we strive to foster a dynamic environment for free expression and robust discourse through safety guardrails of human and AI moderation.
Comments / 0