Getty Receiver Thomas Ives was waived by the Chicago Bears.
Eddie Goldman is back.
The stud nose tackle for the Chicago Bears has been removed from the COVID-19 reserve list, the team announced on August 13.
Goldman chose to opt-out of the 2020 season due to concerns about the coronavirus, and the Bears certainly missed him on the defensive line. He was a no-show at mandatory veteran minicamp in July, igniting rumors of a potential holdout, among other things, but once training camp officially rolled around on July 27, Goldman arrived on schedule. He was placed on the COVID-19 reserve list a few weeks later.
He’s sure to be out for Chicago’s first preseason game against the Miami Dolphins on August 14, but he could see some preseason action after that.
In another roster move, the Bears also waived wide receiver Thomas Ives.
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Bears WR Depth: What Does it Look Like?
Ives, who spent the last two seasons on the Bears’ practice squad, played his college ball at Colgate. He was signed by Chicago as an undrafted free agent in 2019 after he garnered some attention for running the 40-yard dash in 4.4 seconds, and if he clears waivers, the speedy wideout could still return to the Windy City.
With Ives now gone, we may see an increase in opportunities for Jon’Vea Johnson, who is said to be developing quite the connection with future of the franchise, Justin Fields.
The Justin Fields and Jon’Vea Johnson connection is real. The 2 best throws from the QB came to Johnson today. Both on the money and one from about 45ish yards. Impressive stuff. #Bears
Justin Fields deep ball to Jon’Vea Johnson for the TD. Johnson caught the ball in stride.
Johnson signed with the Dallas Cowboys as an UDFA in 2019, but spent the bulk of that season on the injured reserve list with a shoulder injury. He made the Cowboys’ practice squad last year, and was waived by Dallas this spring. He had a brief stint in Jacksonville with the Jaguars before landing in Chicago this summer, where he seems to have developed a solid chemistry with Fields.
This rapport with the Bears rookie signal-caller can only help his chances to make the roster in a very crowded wide receivers room that currently includes: Allen Robinson, Darnell Mooney, Dazz Newsome, Marquise Goodwin, Damiere Byrd, Riley Ridley, Javon Wims, Rodney Adams, Justin Hardy, Jon’Vea Johnson, Chris Lacy and Jester Weah.
It’s looking like Johnson is a shoo-in to make the practice squad and a long shot to make the roster, but the preseason could go a long way to help to determine that.
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Eddie Goldman Should Return to Action Monday
According to Brad Biggs of the Chicago Tribune, Goldman should be back in action Monday, August 16, after Chicago’s first preseason game against Miami.
#Bears announce NT Eddie Goldman has been activated from the reserve/COVID-19 list. Expect him to be back at practice on Monday morning.
“When I came back, everybody greeted me with love. I feel like everybody’s just happy to be back in the building together,” Goldman said about his return to the Bears on July 28.
The veteran nose tackle also talked about what a difficult decision it was for him to opt out in 2020.
“It was really challenging,” Goldman added. “When I made the decision, I weighed all of my options and just thinking I would be away from the game for a year it was just — it really took a toll on me. Especially when I watched the season and how it played out and how we made the playoffs and everything,” he said.
The 27-year-old appeared to be in excellent shape last month when speaking to the media, but we’ll really get to see what kind of shape he’s in when he hits the field. He says he’ll be ready to go.
“It’s just like any first day,” he said. “Gotta go out there, gotta get the call, gotta get used to putting your hands on guys. It’s just that.”
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