The Chicago Bears have announced that one of their rookie wide receivers is retiring from the NFL at age 25 following their two-day rookie minicamp.
According to the team’s transaction wire, the Bears placed former Florida State wide receiver Squirrel White — whom they signed as an undrafted free agent last week — on the reserve/retired list on Monday, May 11. He will no longer count toward the team’s 90-man offseason roster total, but the Bears will retain the rights to his NFL contract.
White signed a UDFA contract with the Bears on May 8 and participated in the first day of their rookie minicamp over the weekend, but The Chicago Tribune’s Sean Hammond reported that he left practice with the team’s training staff before the second workout.
At 5-foot-9 and 177 pounds, White seemed like a long shot to make the Bears’ 53-man roster after catching just five passes for 52 yards during his injury-hampered season with the Seminoles in 2025. He caught 131 passes for 1,665 yards and six touchdowns in his previous three seasons at Tennessee and showed punt return upside at both schools.
Instead, White will call it quits on his NFL career before it properly begins.
Bears Offset Squirrel White’s Exit With 2 WR Signings
White is no longer in the mix for one of the depth roles in the Bears’ 2026 receiving rotation, but the team didn’t waste time adding more bodies to the position group.
In addition to placing White on the retired list, the Bears also announced Monday that they signed veteran Scotty Miller and undrafted rookie Kyron Hudson (Penn State) to their 90-man roster after both participated in their rookie minicamp on a tryout basis.
Miller is a seven-season NFL veteran with 99 career receptions who supplies the Bears with more speed and experience in their bottom-roster competition behind top starters Rome Odunze and Luther Burden III. Meanwhile, Hudson is a physical and big-bodied rookie coming off a quiet final collegiate season at Penn State, catching just 23 passes.
The Bears have quality depth in their receiver room behind their starters after adding veteran Kalif Raymond and third-round rookie Zavion Thomas during the offseason. They also welcome back Jahdae Walker, who made the roster as an undrafted rookie in 2025 and found his way onto the field as part of the rotation before the end of the year.
With that in mind, Miller and Hudson are both likely competing for the sixth receiver spot on the Bears’ initial 53-man roster, if the team elects to keep that many wideouts. Even still, their signings add more depth to the competition pool for training camp.
How Will Bears Use WR Zavion Thomas as Rookie?
While the Bears won’t have an opportunity to see if White has potential to help their team as a rookie, Thomas remains in a prime position to create an impact in 2026.
The question now is: How will the Bears use Thomas to get the most out of him?
The Bears defied most of the media’s consensus draft boards when they took Thomas with the No. 89 pick in the third round, but head coach Ben Johnson made it clear that he believes Thomas’ speed, versatility and return ability will allow him to carve out a “key” role for their offense in 2026 — which could mean out wide and as a ball-carrier.
“He has a unique skillset, just in terms of him being a 4.2 [40-yard dash] guy,” Johnson said. “Those guys don’t grow on trees. It’s easy to look at because that flashes up and everyone sees it, but yet, when you turn on the tape, it’s more than just being able to run deep routes. The versatility that he showed both at Mississippi State and at LSU, from the backfield, whether it’s running routes or getting hand-offs.
“Then, the returning aspect of it. I think it all adds up. (Wide Receivers] Coach [Antwaan] Randle El, myself, [Offensive Coordinator] Press Taylor, we all have a vision of how this guy could really help us. As I talked about, it’s a compliment to what Rome does best, what Luther does best, Kalif does best. He’s a guy that we really feel like can play a key component in what we want to do this year.”
Bears Rookie Wide Receiver Abruptly Retires From NFL After Minicamp