3 Bears veterans who could lose their starting spots to rookies in 2024

General Manager Ryan Poles has done a respectable job bringing quality veterans to the Chicago Bears. Guys like DJ Moore, Tremaine Edmunds, and Montez Sweat would be starters on almost any other team in the NFL. However, not every free agency signing or trade works, and those veterans have to fend off other free agents and exciting, young rookies.

As we inch closer to training camp, these three veterans will want to show out every day if they want to be starters come September.

Nate Davis

After a tumultuous first year with Chicago, many hoped that starting right guard Nate Davis would be ready to go from the first OTA session. Unfortunately, for unknown reasons, Davis did not practice with the team. You have to believe a head coach like Matt Eberflus is losing patience for a high-priced veteran who doesn’t practice and doesn’t blow him away in games.

While the Bears did not draft a guard this year, they did select Kiran Amegadjie, an offensive tackle out of Yale. Coming from the Ivy League, it’s expected that Amegadjie will need to spend up to a full season on the bench to be prepared for the leap in talent at the NFL level, especially since he’s coming off a season-ending injury. However, the Bears seem very excited about his potential. If Davis continues to not practice and doesn’t step up in the regular season, I don’t think it will take much convincing to get Amegadjie in there.

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Keenan Allen

This one is not a knock on Allen. He’s a sure-fire Hall of Famer and will be a major contributor to the Bears in 2024. Only 2024, if you ask me. He will need a new contract after this season, and now that he’s represented by Klutch Sports, a high-profile agency known for getting their clients every penny possible, I don’t think that will happen with the notoriously frugal Bears.

The performance of rookie Rome Odunze will seal Allen’s fate in Chicago. Some believed he was the best receiver in this draft, and if he puts up solid numbers alongside DJ Moore, then I think Allen will prove to be a one-year rental (and that wouldn’t be a bad thing).

DeMarcus Walker

While Montez Sweat has proven to be a legit pass-rushing threat on the edge, no one on the roster seems ready to step up on the opposite side. Walker is currently the starting DE2, but he is far from entrenched in that position, and the Bears traded a future pick to get back into the 2024 draft and select DE Austin Booker.

This one is more of a long shot. Booker is extremely raw and will likely need even more of an adjustment period than Amegadjie. However, if he shows out in training camp and the preseason, similar to how Tyson Bagent flew up the depth chart last year, it’s possible that he could steal Walker’s starting job midway through the season.