The Chicago Bears are making some minor roster moves at the midway point of the season.
The Bears signed veteran defensive end Cassius Marsh to the practice squad, per the NFL waiver wire, and they also released two players.
Chicago terminated the practice squad contract of veteran running back Chris Thompson, and also waived linebacker Sam Kamara, a preseason standout who surprised some when he made the team’s practice squad before getting moved up to the 53-man roster earlier this season. An undrafted free agent out of Stony Brook, Kamara was one of the team’s more feel-good stories of the preseason, as he established himself as an underdog with potential.
In three preseason games, Kamara had six total tackles (four solo, one for loss), a sack and three QB hits. He appeared in three total games for the Bears this season, registering two pressures, two hurries and a tackle, earning a 68.8 run defense grade from Pro Football Focus. He can also play both on the edge and on the interior of the line, so he provided some versatility.
Kamara’s exit might signal the return of Khalil Mack, who missed Chicago’s Week 8 loss to the San Francisco 49ers, although that’s speculation at this point.
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Cassius Marsh: Background & Stats
A former fourth-round pick by the Seattle Seahawks in 2014, Marsh is a bit of a journeyman. He spent his first three seasons with Seattle, before getting traded to New England just prior to the 2017 season. A report by Sports Illustrated’s Albert Breer revealed Marsh “pitched a fit over playing time at halftime” during a game that year, and the Pats apparently released him shortly after that.
Marsh has also spent time with the 49ers, who picked him up shortly after he was waived by New England, the Arizona Cardinals, Indianapolis Colts, Jacksonville Jaguars and Pittsburgh Steelers. Over his seven-year career, the 6-foot-4, 254-pound DE has 175 total tackles (128 solo, 25 for loss), 29 QB hits, five forced fumbles and 14.0 sacks in 92 games (nine starts).
His injury history is relatively clean, with no major red flags.
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Bears Already Tabbed Marsh as Protected Player on Practice Squad
Heading into Week 9, the Bears protected four players on their practice squad, according to the waiver wire, three of whom are defenders: running back Artavis Pierce, linebacker Charles Snowden, defensive lineman Margus Hunt and Marsh. With Mack out with a foot injury and top defensive lineman Akiem Hicks battling through a groin issue, pass rushers are at a premium in Chicago right now.
Of the four, Hunt and Pierce are most likely to get called up first, as Hunt has already played in three games this season, and Chicago is also short on RBs with David Montgomery and Tarik Cohen still out. We’ll see what happens, but much will depend on the respective statuses of Mack and Hicks.
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Bears Cut Preseason Standout & Veteran RB, Sign Pass Rusher