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The Chicago Bears have begun the process of whittling their roster down to 53. The team announced the release of four players: offensive lineman Gage Cervenka, defensive back Dionte Ruffin and wide receivers Jester Weah and Justin Hardy.
NFL teams must cut their respective rosters down to 85 players by Tuesday, August 17, and shave them down to 80 by August 24. Final 53-man rosters will be finalized after the third preseason game on August 31, so there will be several more cuts to come.
With only three preseason games instead of four this year, the final two matchups will be more important than ever for players on the roster bubble. According to Bears head coach Matt Nagy, players on the cusp may have more limited opportunities than ever to impress the coaching staff. “This week what you can plan on seeing is probably a little bit more of the starters,” Nagy told the media on August 16 about his plans for Chicago’s second preseason game against the Buffalo Bills.
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Who Did the Bears Just Cut? A Refresher
Hardy was selected in the fourth round of the 2015 NFL draft by the Atlanta Falcons (107th overall), and the veteran wideout just signed with the Bears in late July at the start of training camp. Cervenka was an undrafted free agent out of Clemson who didn’t play at all last year, and the Bears brought him in the first week of August amidst serious offensive line issues. Clearly, neither were around long enough to make much of an impact.
The Bears added Ruffin in May, and he recorded one tackle and recovered a fumble in Chicago’s first preseason game, a 20-13 win over the Miami Dolphins. Weah, an UDFA, spent time with the Houston Texans and Washington Football Team before signing with the Bears in January 2021.
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Who Are Some Key Names on Chicago’s Roster Bubble?
There are several interesting names on both sides of the ball who could be released. On offense, wide receivers Riley Ridley, Javon Wims and Jon’Vea Johnson are three names to look out for. The Bears took Ridley in the fourth round (126th overall) in 2019 and Wims in the seventh round (224 overall) in 2018, and neither have developed into much. With the connection rookie quarterback Justin Fields has developed with Johnson, who spent time on the Dallas Cowboys‘ practice squad last year, it wouldn’t be a surprise to see Johnson stick around over both Wims and Ridley.
With the addition of tight end Jesse James, who is pretty much guaranteed a spot on the roster at this point after also gelling with Fields (James caught a 30-yard score from the rookie in the first preseason game), fellow TEs Jesper Horsted and J.P. Holtz are vulnerable. Running backs Ryan Nall and Artavis Pierce are also battling for one spot they both can’t share.
On defense, UDFA Charles Snowden will also be an intriguing name to watch. The outside linebacker had an impressive debut in the Bears’ first preseason game against the Dolphins, recording one sack, two tackles (one for loss) and two quarterback hits. If he keeps showing out like that, he has an excellent shot at making the active roster — but it may come at the expense of Khalil Mack’s younger brother, LeDarius, who was on Chicago’s practice squad in 2020.
All in all, the Bears have quite a few tough decisions to make in the coming weeks. It will be interesting to see who they keep around.
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