LAKE FOREST, Ill. — The Chicago Bears announced their 53-man roster ahead of the 4 p.m. ET deadline set by the NFL Tuesday.
Here’s a breakdown of how their roster looks.
Players who were waived
The Bears waived 14 players, including four players from the offensive side of the ball, eight from the defensive side, and two from special teams.
- Micah Baskerville, linebacker
- Brenden Bates, tight end
- Theo Benedet, offensive line
- Jake Curhan, offensive line
- Carl Jones Jr., linebacker
- Leon Jones, defensive back
- Jamree Kromah, defensive line
- Cameron Lyons, long snapper
- Dashaun Mallory, defensive line
- Paul Moala, linebacker
- Auustin Reed, quarterback
- Reddy Steward, defensive back
- Ro Terrence, defensive back
- Corliss Waitman, punter
Players who were released
The Bears also released nine players ahead of the 53-man roster deadline, which included five players on offense, and four players on defense.
- Khari Blasingame, fullback
- Stephen Carlson, tight end
- Adrian Colbert, defensive back
- Aviante Collins, offensive line
- Byron Cowart, defensive line
- Collin Johnson, Wide receiver
- Tavarius Moore, defensive back
- Brett Rypien, quarterback
- Greg Stroman Jr., defensive back
On an added note, wide receiver Dante Pettis was placed on injured reserve, while offensive lineman Larry Borom and defensive lineman Jacob Martin were also placed on IR, but with a designation to return to the 53-man roster once they have recovered from their injuries.
Here’s where the 53-man roster officially stands, as of Tuesday evening:
53-man roster
QB (2): Caleb Williams (R), Tyson Bagent
RB (4): D’Andre Swift, Khalil Herbert, Travis Homer and Roschon Johnson
WR (6): DJ Moore, Keenan Allen, Rome Odunze (R), Tyler Scott, Velus Jones Jr. and DeAndre Carter
TE (3): Cole Kmet, Gerald Everett and Marcedes Lewis
OL (10): Braxton Jones, Darnell Wright, Kiran Amegadjie (R), Coleman Shelton, Doug Kramer Jr., Teven Jenkins, Nate Davis, Bill Murray, Ryan Bates and Matt Pryor
DL (10): Montez Sweat, Darrell Taylor, DeMarcus Walker, Daniel Hardy, Austin Booker (R), Dominique Robinson, Gervon Dexter Sr., Andrew Billings, Chris Williams and Zacch Pickens
LB (5): Tremaine Edmunds, T.J. Edwards, Jack Sanborn, Amen Ogbongbemiga and Noah Sewell
DB (10): Josh Blackwell, Kyler Gordon, Jaylon Johnson, Jaylon Jones, Terell Smith, Tyrique Stevenson, Kevin Byard III, Jaquan Brisker, Elijah Hicks and Jonathan Owens.
Specialists (3): Cairo Santos (K), Tory Taylor (R-P), Patrick Scales (LS)
Looking ahead
On Wednesday, the Bears can establish their 16-man practice squad, where six of those players can have unlimited NFL experience, and are typically filled out with players waived during final cuts.
Collin Johnson and Khari Blasingame are players expected to be retained after cuts and waivers, according to the Chicago Tribune’s Brad Biggs.
All 18 players selected by the Bears in the NFL Draft since Ryan Poles became general manager made the initial 53-man roster — Caleb Williams, Rome Odunze, Kiran Amegadjie, Tory Taylor and Austin Booker in 2024, Darnell Wright, Gervon Dexter Sr., Tyrique Stevenson, Zacch Pickens, Roschon Johnson, Tyler Scott, Noah Sewell and Terell Smith in 2023, and Kyler Gordon, Jaquan Brisker, Velus Jones Jr., Braxton Jones and Dominique Robinson in 2022.
48 of the players on the 53-man roster are also Poles acquisitions, with Khalil Herbert, Cole Kmet, Teven Jenkins, Jaylon Johnson and Patrick Scales being the only holdovers from the Matt Nagy/Ryan Pace regime.
The Chicago Bears kick-off their regular season at Soldier Field when they take on the Tennessee Titans Sunday, Sept. 8 at noon CT.