Thread: Bears Roster; Who's on the Bubble, Who's in Trouble.............

Well here's our first look at how the final roster might shape up and players who are canidates for the practice squad.

I see Mark Potash has the opinion about Sanz that I have. You gotta keep the guy because we'd never get him through waivers and on to the practice squad. 25 other teams were interested in him before he signed with the Bears and after his preseason I'd be willing to bet those 25 and maybe a few more would still be interested.

Here's my list of a few guys who are on the fringe that I believe we should keep around either on the roster as STeamers and backup or on the practice squad.

RB/FB: Keep "Tofu" on the 53 man roster, Eddie W on the PS and Unga on the PS if he ever returns (I've got good feelings about him if we can ever get him playing)

WR/TE: Sanz on the 53 man roster, Kris Adams and Onrea Jones on the PS, Des Clark on the 53 man roster, Kyle Adams and Andre Smith on the PS (we have to keep Smith, if it wasn't for the deal we gave Spaeth this kid would be making the team, he blocks his ass off)

Oline: OMG on the 53 man roster just because we have no other choice now that they've moved Horn to OG, Horn as utility lineman who hopefully will give us an excuse to get rid of OMG, Linnenkohl and Henry on the PS, and for God's sake find another OT on the waiver wire because OMG sucks and Josh Davis has no clue how to block.

Dline: Nick Reed and Mario Addison on the 53 man roster, Harrison for depth at NT until AA is 100%, Laptad to the PS.

LB: Everyone listed on the 53 man roster, Trahan to the PS, pray for Pisa to return and find a vet MLB/SLB to replace DeCicco until he gets some experience on the PS.

CB: Pretty much the same as the LBs with everyone through Josh Moore making the final 53, Ryan Jones to the PS, cull the waiver wire for some vet help.

SS/FS: Again pretty much a given for the first four and we keep Venable on the 53 man roster because he's tackling machine on ST, Walters and whoever else we may find on waivers to the PS.

Specialists: Waive Lanning what else?

if we don't still have him we need to resign that one ball boy.... kid was fast. that or trade him to Al Davis for a 1st rounder.....

Is it only 8 players you can keep on your practice squad?

Please cut Harrison already

Originally Posted by Bear Goggles

Is it only 8 players you can keep on your practice squad?

Yeah so I've got;

Williams, Unga, Kris Adams, O. Jones, Kyle Adams, Smith, Linnekohl, Henry on offense (8)

Laptad, Trahan, R. Jones, Walters on defense (4)

So some of these guys don't make it.

Here's another prediction on the 53 man roster and PS canidates from Brad Biggs.


Bears roster breakdown: Heated battles remain

Comments

Dane Sanzenbacher (18) seems to have won a roster spot, and Kris Adams is a practice-squad possibility. (Nuccio DiNuzzo/Tribune Photo)

By Brad Biggs Tribune reporter 2:09 p.m. CDT, August 31, 2011


The number crunching has started for the Chicago Bears and they’ve already got a good idea how 80 will turn into 53 come Saturday.

Injuries in the preseason finale Thursday night against the Cleveland Browns could reshape things. It has happened before. Backup running back Kevin Jones was lost for the year in the final preseason game two years ago with an ankle injury. In 2003, the team suffered a greater blow as guard Rex Tucker was lost for the season with an ankle injury in the final preseason game at New England.

But any way you slice and dice the roster, it looks like there could be one and possibly two jobs up for grabs. Keep in mind the club made a slight personnel shift to being a running team during the offseason. But that’s probably not going to stop six wide receivers from making the roster because of the emergence of undrafted rookie free agent Dan Sanzenbacher.
“We have to have an idea this late in preseason,” coach Lovie Smith said. “But (Thursday’s game) is one more look and if a player does do something that you haven't seen ... I'll say the last couple games we learned a lot about a few players. The last game hopefully we'll see the same thing. Every year there are a couple surprises and that will probably be the case this year, too.

“Everyone realizes 53 guys will stay and there's (an eight-man) practice squad. But it's still tough telling guys his dream is maybe not ending right now but it's cut a little bit short for the time being. That's always hard. But again, when guys get into it, they know that it's part of it.”

Let’s take a look at the roster and how it could shake out:

Quarterback
Projected to make team: 3
2010 opening roster: 3
Players: Jay Cutler, Caleb Hanie, Nathan Enderle

Comment: The Bears tried to slide draft pick Dan LeFevour to the practice squad a year ago and that plan blew up on them when the Cincinnati Bengals claimed him. They want to keep Enderle, a fifth-round pick, around and see how he develops. If all goes well, he pushes for the No. 2 job next summer.

Running back
Projected to make team: 3
2010 opening roster: 4
Players: Matt Forte, Marion Barber, Kahlil Bell

Comment: Chester Taylor is as good as gone and that will happen either via trade or release. The Bears kept four a year ago but Garrett Wolfe was strictly a special teams player. Many have asked about Harvey Unga, who has been excused for personal reasons, but there seems to be little chance he will return to the club, even as a member of the practice squad.

Fullback
Projected to make team: 1
2010 opening roster: 0
Players: Eddie Williams, Will Ta’ufo’ou or Kyle Adams

Comment: Williams has been listed atop the depth chart but Ta’ufo’ou got the bulk of the playing time in the third preseason game at Tennessee. Adams is intriguing. He was moved from tight end to the fullback position midway through training camp and he has gotten heavy work with the starters on special teams. He’s a versatile player. The shift to being more run-oriented demands a fullback for certain situations but the player has to be a valuable special teams performer. All of these players are practice-squad eligible.

Wide receivers
Projected to make team: 6
2010 opening roster: 5
Players: Devin Hester, Roy Williams, Earl Bennett, Johnny Knox, Sam Hurd, Dane Sanzenbacher

Comment: There’s not going to be a role for Sanzenbacher on special teams, but he is a specialist of sorts for offensive coordinator Mike Martz and he figures to stick. Hurd is expected to pick up the special teams role Rashied Davis held last year. He also will be a possibility in the red zone because he has good size at 6-3, 200 pounds, and he blocks well. Lanky Kris Adams is an interesting possibility for the practice squad as he has made plays downfield.

Tight ends
Projected to make team: 3
2010 opening roster: 4
Players: Kellen Davis, Matt Spaeth, Desmond Clark

Comment: Clark is fortunate his knee injury last Saturday at Tennessee was not more serious. Had it been even a moderate injury, his future with the team could have been in jeopardy. He’s a solid veteran to have in the position room. Virginia Tech product Andre Smith could be an ideal practice squad candidate as an undrafted rookie.

Offensive line
Projected to make team: 8
2010 opening roster: 8
Players: J’Marcus Webb, Chris Williams, Roberto Garza, Lance Louis, Gabe Carimi, Frank Omiyale, Edwin Williams, Chris Spencer

Comment: Don’t discount the possibility Levi Horn will challenge Edwin Williams for the final roster spot. Horn spent some time at guard earlier in preseason but he’s been moved to right tackle. He’s strictly a right tackle, though, so Omiyale likely sticks as the swing tackle. If Horn doesn’t make the 53-man roster, he likely will be asked to join the practice squad. Nebraska guard Ricky Henry also could be a practice squad candidate.

Defensive line
Projected to make team: 9
2010 opening roster: 9
Players: Julius Peppers, Israel Idonije, Henry Melton, Anthony Adams, Matt Toeaina, Corey Wootton, Amobi Okoye, Stephen Paea and pick one from among Marcus Harrison, Mario Addison, Nick Reed or a free agent

Comment: The first eight players listed look to be locks to have jobs and the Bears could just go with eight linemen. But Smith and general manager Jerry Angelo always look to have protection at this position, so figure a ninth player makes it. Harrison stuck last year but wasn’t on the field for 10 percent of the snaps and has little value on special teams. He could have booked his ticket out of town when he showed up on a contract year badly out of shape. Making plays against reserves from other teams doesn’t mean a whole lot. Addison flashed immediately after defensive end Wootton was injured but seems to have plateaued. Reed is a player that Bears director of player personnel Tim Ruskell has liked for some time. The final job figures to go to one of these three unless the Bears make a move for a player outside the building. The bet here is Alex Brown would love to come back but Smith was dismissive of the idea Tuesday. Maybe he sees something in the inexperienced ends we don’t. Addison and Reed are practice squad candidates

Linebackers
Projected to make team: 6
2010 opening roster: 6
Players: Brian Urlacher, Lance Briggs, Nick Roach, Brian Iwuh, J.T. Thomas and pick one from among Dom DeCicco or a free agent

Comment: The Bears have kept a minimum of six linebackers to open every season since Smith has been coach. Could they reduce that number to five? It’s possible but we’ll go with the track record here and say a sixth makes it. DeCicco has picked things up quickly and projects as a backup in the middle and possibly on the strong side. There are going to be an abundance of linebackers available though and if one catches the Bears’ attention, he could be the guy. DeCicco also could stick on the practice squad.

Cornerbacks
Projected to make team: 6
2010 opening roster: 6
Players: Charles Tillman, Tim Jennings, Zack Bowman, D.J. Moore, Joshua Moore, Corey Graham

Comment: Position looks pretty set. Joshua Moore has made some improvements to ensure he sticks around after doing very little as a rookie. Ryan Jones and Antareis Bryan are possibilities for the practice squad.

Safeties
Projected to make team: 4
2010 opening roster: 5
Players: Chris Harris, Major Wright, Craig Steltz, Chris Conte

Comment: Injuries forced the Bears to keep an extra safety to start last year. That probably will not happen this time around.

Specialists
Projected to make team: 3
2010 opening roster: 3
Players: Robbie Gould, Pat Mannelly, Adam Podlesh

Comment: It’s the easiest part of the roster to break down. No secrets here.

That is 52 players projected to make the roster, leaving one wild-card spot. What are the possible places the Bears could add an extra body?

1. Special teams. Tiebreakers at the bottom of the roster often go to the player who can most help on special teams. Remember, Dave Toub is rebuilding his units. There could be a young player the Bears like.

2. Offensive line. If one of the young players is really valued, maybe he sticks. Horn and Edwin Williams are worth watching.

3. Defensive line. Could Harrison and one of the young defensive ends make it? Or Harrison and a free agent? Not out of the realm of possibilities.

bmbiggs@tribune.com

Twitter @BradBiggs

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