Chicago Bears’ 5 most surprising roster cuts

The worst day on the NFL calendar has come and gone: roster cut-down day. Hundreds of players have (for now) had their NFL dreams dashed. The Chicago Bears trimmed the roster down to the required 53-man limit and, as usual, there were some surprising names on the list of released players.

Here’s the five most surprising cuts from the Bears’ roster.

CB Reddy Steward

The Bears have a stacked secondary room so most fans knew that some pretty good cornerbacks would have to be released. Still, after his two-interception game against the Kansas City Chiefs, I thought Steward had done enough to earn a spot on the depth chart. The undrafted rookie should have no problem finding a new home.

LB Micah Baskerville

Another defender who had a standout preseason, Baskerville’s biggest play came against the Buffalo Bills when he returned an interception for a touchdown. Like the secondary, the linebacker room is loaded with talented starters, but the depth behind them is a little shaky. I would have thought Baskerville had done enough this preseason to bump Noah Sewell out of his spot.

QB Brett Rypien

This one definitely came as a surprise. Between Chicago’s starting and backup quarterbacks, rookie Caleb Willams and 2nd-year Tyson Bagent, there just isn’t a lot of NFL experience. Rypien has that experience, plus he’s been in a Shane Waldron offense before. I’m sure they intend to bring Rypien back to the practice squad, but I would have thought they’d like to keep him around on gamedays.

OL Ja’Tyre Carter

Carter was a member of GM Ryan Poles’ first draft class and had so far seen limited action. Still, he looked good in preseason work and seemed to have the makings of a quality backup guard. He should command interest on the waiver wire.

TE Stephen Carlson

With how often Waldron likes to employ two or more tight ends on offense, I thought there was a chance they’d want to keep four tight ends on the roster after Cole Kmet, Gerald Everett, and Marcedes Lewis. It was not to be. Carlson had a solid preseason but was released anyway, though the Bears doubtlessly would like to bring him back to the practice squad.