Projecting Bears' 53-man roster after NFL Draft, free agency

QUARTERBACKS (2): Mitch Trubisky, Nick Foles

It’s hard to see a scenario in which Trubisky is not on the 2020 Bears’ roster — he’s not getting cut, and the Bears are committed to giving him a chance in an open competition with Foles. If he loses it? He’s not getting traded. If it wins it? He’s not getting traded. 

RUNNING BACKS (3): David Montgomery, Tarik Cohen, Ryan Nall

Nall makes the cut right now given he’s the one of three running backs on the roster, but I’d expect he’ll have to compete with someone besides undrafted free agent Artavis Pierce in camp. 

[MORE: 5 takeaways from Bears' draft class]

WIDE RECEIVERS (6): Allen Robinson, Anthony Miller, Cordarrelle Patterson, Riley Ridley, Javon Wims, Darnell Mooney

I think the Bears can still add some competitive depth at wideout even after drafting Mooney, but if they don’t, this was an easy six to get to. 

TIGHT ENDS (5): Jimmy Graham, Cole Kmet, Demetrius Harris, Ben Braunecker, J.P. Holtz

Yes, the Bears currently have 10 tight ends on their roster, but that’s not as big a deal as the jokes about it have seemed to make it. Graham and Kmet are locks, and Harris and Braunecker look like good bets. The Bears can carry a fifth tight end over a fourth running back here, with that guy being Holtz — who has flexibility to play fullback. Gone, then, are: Jesper Horsted, Dax Raymond, Eric Saubert, Darion Clark and, yes, Adam Shaheen. 

[MORE: Why Cole Kmet fits in Bears' offense]

OFFENSIVE LINE (8): Charles Leno Jr., James Daniels, Cody Whitehair, Bobby Massie, Germain Ifedi, Jason Spriggs, Rashaad Coward, Alex Bars

The Bears’ two seventh round picks — Arlington Hambright and Lachavious Simmons — are probably practice squad guys. The loser of the Ifedi/Coward competition should still make the roster given their flexibility to play both tackle and guard. I wouldn't be surprised to see either Hambright or Simmons make the roster over Bars, but he's on it for now. 

DEFENSIVE LINE (6): Akiem Hicks, Eddie Goldman, Bilal Nichols, Roy Robertson-Harris, Abdullah Anderson, Brent Urban

I took Anderson and Urban here as some of the last guys on the roster — they beat out, in this case, a couple of cornerbacks. The Bears don’t have any money guaranteed to Anderson and only have $90,000 guaranteed to Urban, so both players are very much on the roster bubble.

OUTSIDE LINEBACKERS (5): Khalil Mack, Robert Quinn, Barkevious Mingo, Trevis Gipson, Ledarius Mack

I, for one, am not counting out any member of the Mack family’s ability to make an NFL roster. Ledarius Mack — signed as an undrafted free agent — is not his brother, but did have 11 TFLs and seven sacks for Buffalo in 2019. Mingo, in this scenario, edges out Isaiah Irving for a roster spot. Both have contributed on special teams in their careers; Mingo has a longer track record than Irving, so he gets the nod.

INSIDE LINEBACKERS (4): Danny Trevathan, Roquan Smith, Joel Iyiegbuniwe, Josh Woods 

With Nick Kwiatkoski and Kevin Pierre-Louis both moving on in free agency, the Bears will have to rely on “Iggy” and Woods as their primary backups to Trevathan and Smith. It wouldn’t be a surprise to see the Bears add a free agent here for depth, potentially pushing one of these inside ‘backers off the roster — or a bubble guy at defensive end or cornerback.

CORNERBACKS (6): Kyle Fuller, Buster Skrine, Jaylon Johnson, Kindle Vildor, Kevin Toliver II, Artie Burns

This was probably the toughest group to project, since we’re notably cutting 2019 sixth round pick Duke Shelley and CFL signee Tre Roberson. The rationale for cutting them in favor of Toliver and Burns: Both have special teams experience and can be backups on the outside; Vildor, meanwhile, pushes Shelley out as the No. 2 slot corner behind Skrine. 

[MORE: Which rookies are most likely to make an instant impact?]

SAFETIES (5): Eddie Jackson, Deon Bush, DeAndre Houston-Carson, Sherrick McManis, Jordan Lucas

Bush would seem to have the inside track to start next to Jackson, though the Bears could try to sign a veteran to compete here. Lucas, a cheap free agent signing last month, looks more like a special teams guy than someone who’ll be counted on to start in this defense 

SPECIALISTS (3): Eddy Pineiro, Pat O’Donnell, Patrick Scales

The Bears brought in competition for Pineiro in Ramiz Ahmed, but he’s a guy who was out of football in 2019 and most recently kicked in college at Nevada. This feels like Pineiro’s job to lose, though he could also lose it to a free agent if he struggles in camp. 

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