Brad Biggs: "Bears set 53-man roster — for now"

**JustAnotherBearsFan99** · 08-31-2012, 08:10 PM

Good points!

The Bears are expected to re-sign defensive tackle Amobi Okoye after he was released by the Buccaneers.

By Brad Biggs, Chicago Tribune reporter 7:35 p.m. CDT, August 31, 2012

The Bears wanted to bring Amobi Okoye back after last season but couldn't get a deal done to prevent him from bolting for the Buccaneers.

Now, they're adding him just in time for Week 1, provided a bothersome knee checks out in a physical that is expected to be performed Saturday. The Bucs cut Okoye loose after he struggled staying on the practice field for them following arthroscopic knee surgery in June.

According to an NFL source, he will sign a one-year contract with the Bears for the minimum if their medical staff checks off on the knee. That would give the defense a proven performer at a position that has been a question mark, particularly with Stephen Paea sidelined since suffering an ankle sprain Aug. 11. Paea is expected to return to practice next week and now Okoye will give coach Lovie Smith and defensive coordinator Rod Marinelli a familiar option coming off a year in which he participated in 55 percent of the defensive snaps and had four sacks.

If the Bears add Okoye they will need to clear a roster spot a day after making moves to reach the 53-man limit. That is the cruel reality of this weekend for players at the bottom of the roster who survive "final" cuts one day only to be zapped the next.

None of the moves made Friday were stunning but two players who had big offensive games in a 28-20 victory Thursday against the Browns in Cleveland were let go.

Veteran quarterback Josh McCown had his contract terminated and running back Armando Allen was waived. So, the Bears will go with two quarterbacks on the roster for the first time since 2009 with Jay Cutler and Jason Campbell. The club will sign Matt Blanchard to the practice squad Saturday, according to a source.

The Bears cut a pair of draft picks as cornerbacks Isaiah Frey and Greg McCoy were placed on waivers. It was notable the team gave up on both the sixth- and seventh-round picks, a departure from tendencies in the Jerry Angelo era. Instead of being forced to cut fullback Tyler Clutts, the Bears found a trading partner. He was dealt to the Texans for cornerback Sherrick McManis, a former Northwestern standout Houston drafted in the fifth round in 2010. McManis projects to be a special teams addition.

"I am really happy to come back home to play for the home team," the Peoria Richwoods grad said. "I'm going to give them everything I've got and show them I was well worth getting. Trades don't happen that often and I am very appreciative for the opportunity to go to Chicago."

Veteran defensive end Chauncey Davis had his contract terminated after Cheta Ozougwu outperformed him in preseason. Ozougwu had a sack against the Browns and was consistent rushing the passer through summer with a quick first step.

Wide receivers Joe Anderson, Brittan Golden and Terriun Crump, safety Mark LeGree, cornerbacks Cornelius Brown and Jonathan Wilhite, linebackers Xavier Adibi and Jabara Williams, defensive linemen Jordan Miller and Aston Whiteside, tight end Brandon Venson and offensive linemen Ricky Henry, Cory Brandon, James Brown and A.J. Greene were let go. Anderson, Williams, Henry, Brandon and Brown could return on the practice squad along with Frey and McCoy.

Defensive tackle Nate Collins was moved to the reserve/suspended list to serve a one-week punishment. He does not count against the roster but a decision will have to be made on him after the season opener. Wide receiver Dane Sanzenbacher made the roster as expected and safety Jeremy Jones and linebacker Patrick Trahan stuck after nice games in Cleveland. Punter Ryan Quigley remains on the roster with Adam Podlesh still working his way back from a hip injury.

Still, the 53-man roster remains a work in progress and the bottom of it can be turned over quickly.

bmbiggs@tribune.com

**JustAnotherBearsFan99** · 08-31-2012, 08:22 PM

Clayton's take:

LINK to the article

Chicago Bears cutdown analysis

August, 31, 2012 Aug 31
8:56
PM ET

By John Clayton | ESPN.com

Most significant move: The most significant move of the final cutdown, and the entire offseason, is how aggressive the Bears were in trying to upgrade special teams. In free agency, they signed Eric Weems to help Devin Hester with returns. They kept undrafted safety Jeremy Jones to help on special teams, then traded fullback Tyler Clutts to Houston to acquire cornerback Sherrick McManis. They also kept linebacker Patrick Trahan to help out on special teams. Figuring the team will have a better offense, the Bears wanted to shore up special teams to keep their offense in good field position.

Onward and upward: With only three draft choices making the 53-man roster -- third-round pick Brandon Hardin ended up on injured reserve -- the Bears need to see if they can slide released draft choices Isaiah Frey (sixth round) or Greg McCoy (seventh round) to the practice squad. The Bears may only keep one on the practice squad because both are cornerbacks. They also hope to get undrafted tackle James Brown through waivers to get him on the practice squad. The Bears kept the predicted eight offensive linemen on the active roster, so they need a tackle (Brown, A.J. Greene or Cory Brandon) and an inside prospect to fill out the practice squad.

What’s next: The Bears aren’t standing pat. They ended up adding 16 new players to the roster and are in the process of signing defensive tackle Amobi Okoye as a backup. It wouldn’t be surprising if they look at Antonio Dixon, a defensive tackle released by the Philadelphia Eagles. A decision still has to be made on a punter. Adam Podlesh suffered a hip flexor injury, so the Bears kept undrafted punter Ryan Quigley on the active roster. It’s not out of the question for them to look for another punter who was released.

**JustAnotherBearsFan99** · 08-31-2012, 08:25 PM

This is where we're at now. Sounds like we may see some changes over the next day or so:

LINK to the article
Chicago Bears: Final 53-man roster

By Gene Chamberlain | CBSSports.com

August 31, 2012 8:11 pm ET

Injuries played a part in several Bears moves in the final roster cut-down, including punter, where Ryan Quigley was retained while Adam Podlesh comes back from a hip-flexor injury.

At linebacker, the Bears kept seven instead of six, as many expected -- possibly due to Brian Urlacher's uncertain knee.

This roster quite possibly will change Sunday as several reports have said that former Bear DT Amobi Okoye, who had been cut by the Bucs, is returning to Chicago for a physical and could join the team.

QB (2) -- Jay Cutler (7th year, Vanderbilt); Jason Campbell (8th year, Auburn).

RB (3) -- Matt Forte (5th year, Tulane); Michael Bush (6th year, Louisville); Lorenzo Booker (5th year, Florida State).

WR (6) -- Brandon Marshall (7th year, Central Florida); Earl Bennett (5th year, Vanderbilt); Alshon Jeffery (rookie, South Carolina); Devin Hester (7th year, Miami); Eric Weems (6th year, Bethune-Cookman); Dane Sanzenbacher (2nd year, Ohio State).

TE (4) -- Kellen Davis (5th year, Michigan State); Matt Spaeth (6th year, Minnesota); Kyle Adams (2nd year, Purdue); Evan Rodriguez (rookie, Temple).

OL (8) -- C Roberto Garza (12th year, Texas A&M-Kingsville); G Chris Spencer (8th year, Mississippi); G Chilo Rachal (5th year, USC); T Gabe Carimi (2nd year, Wisconsin); T J'Marcus Webb (3rd year, Navarro College JC); T Chris Williams (5th year, Vanderbilt); G Lance Louis (4th year, San Diego St.); Edwin Williams (3rd year, Maryland).

DL (9) -- DE Julius Peppers (11th year, North Carolina); DE Israel Idonije (9th year, Manitoba); DE Shea McClellin (rookie, Boise State); DE Cheta Ozougwu (1st year, Rice); DE Corey Wootton (3rd year, Northwestern); DT Henry Melton (4th year, Texas); DT Stephen Paea (2nd year, Oregon State); DT Matt Toeaina (5th year, Oregon); DT Brian Price (3rd year, UCLA).

LB (7) -- LB Brian Urlacher (13th year, New Mexico); LB Lance Briggs; LB Nick Roach (6th year, Northwestern); LB J.T. Thomas (2nd year, West Virginia); LB Blake Costanzo (6th year, Lafayette); LB Geno Hayes (5th year, Florida State); Patrick Trahan (2nd year, Mississippi).

DB (10) -- S Chris Conte (2nd year, Cal); S Major Wright (3rd year, Florida); S Craig Steltz (5th year, LSU); S Anthony Walters (2nd year, Delaware); S Jeremy Jones (rookie, Wayne State); CB Charles Tillman (10th year, Louisiana-Lafayette); CB Tim Jennings (7th year, Georgia); CB Kelvin Hayden (8th year, Illinois); CB D.J. Moore (4th year, Vanderbilt); CB Sherrick McManis (3rd year, Northwestern).

Special teams (4) -- LS Patrick Mannelly (15th year, Duke); PK Robbie Gould (8th year, Penn State); Adam Podlesh (6th year, Maryland); Ryan Quigley (rookie, Boston College).

**Riczaj01** · 08-31-2012, 08:53 PM

Ya the score update guy kept saying this is actuall the worst time for guys b/c they think they can relax b/c they made it, and then over the next two days their released afterall for someone else. That really is brutal.

Inj's played a big part on how this current roster is done. I think we would have kept another RB/FB and maybe McCown if the inj's hadn't happened. Some of that is good some not so much.

**JustAnotherBearsFan99** · 08-31-2012, 08:59 PM

We have an upgraded personnel scouting dept, so hopefully they are poring over the hundreds of released players to see if there might be a young player worth grabbing. I'd love to see an oline guy, even if it's just a decent project (key word here is 'decent' and not a bum). We've released some very solid young players today. Surely some other team out there may have released a solid young oline guy. This would give us an opportunity to begin next years oline upgrade with a "baby step" this year.

Or, raid another team's practice squad once they're set, and grab the best oline guy from the 31 PS's out there. The "catch" in this would be that we can't add him to our PS. He'd have to bump some bum off our our oline active roster guys (like Rachal).

**marshallplan** · 08-31-2012, 09:11 PM

So, is this what we have so far?

Cutler
Campbell

Forte
Bush
Booker

Davis
Spaeth
E.Rodriguez
Adams

Marshall
Hester
Bennett
Jeffrey
Weems
Sanzenbacher

Carimi
Webb
Williams
Spencer
Louis
E.Williams
Rachal
Garza
Mannelly

Gould
Podlesh
Quigley

Peppers
Idonije
McClellin
Wootton
Ozougwu

Melton
Paea
Toeaina
Price

Urlacher
Briggs
Roach
Hayes
J.T.Thomas
Trahan
Costanzo

Tillman
Jennings
Moore
Hayden
McManus

Conte
Wright
Steltz
J.Jones
Walters

-with Okoye on the way which makes another cut necessary.
Knox PUP
Hardin IR
Collins 1gm susp.

**JustAnotherBearsFan99** · 08-31-2012, 09:15 PM

That looks right to me, marshallplan.

**Blue Horse-shoe** · 08-31-2012, 09:15 PM

Congrats to all of em especially Price who I was rooting for the most . Sorry to see Clutts go but a least he's still in the league. Cutting Henry was a mistake but we're deeper now so maybe they can put him on the PS. Hope some of the others find a gig.

Now it gets real baby . It's gonna be a great year.

**marshallplan** · 08-31-2012, 09:16 PM

didn't see yours posted

**JustAnotherBearsFan99** · 08-31-2012, 09:18 PM

Originally Posted by marshallplan

didn't see yours posted

Yours is a lot easier to read. Glad you posted it. It's better.

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Brad Biggs: "Bears set 53-man roster — for now"

oops, my bad

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