Kentrell Brice Heads Up Bears' Ex-Packers Club
On a Thursday night in late September of 2017, Kentrell Brice made his first NFL interception.
Brice picked off an ill-advised pass into tight zone coverage to Deonte Thompson by Bears quarterback Mike Glennon—no surprise there. It was also Brice's only Packers interception.
This season he wouldn't mind getting the chance to flip the script and pick one off for the Bears against his old team.
Brice is part of the old Packers club the Bears have going this year, at least at training camp.
Tight end Jimmy Graham wide receiver Trevor Davis, tackle Jason Spriggs and pass rusher James Vaughters all were with the Packers at one point or other, as well. Graham, Davis and Spriggs all would have axes to grind with the Packers after being shown the door but Brice might have the biggest one.
After being an undrafted free agent, Brice worked his way up into a spot by 2018 where he could actually start at safety alongside Ha Ha Clinton-Dix if he beat out Josh Jones, and he did.
Brice didn't exactly excel, as he made 50 tackles, a sack and two deflected passes. The problem was he missed 18 tackles and recorded a 155.5 passer rating against when targeted for 32 throws. He gave up 25 completions, including four touchdowns.
Brice's stay at the top of the depth chart lasted only one season under new defensive coordinator Mike Pettine. A restricted free agent in 2019, the Packers told him thanks but no thanks and decided against tendering him an offer. When Brice went unclaimed, he tried to play in the XFL and attended a minicamp for the Seattle Dragons. He was cut by the Dragons.
In a short time he'd gone from starter for the Packers to XFL reject.
The Bears signed Brice this offseason.
It's possible he hasn't played his best football. In 2018 when he was a starter, he was coming off a bad ankle injury suffered in the game when he picked off a pass against the Bears. He underwent reconstructive surgery to repair a torn deltoid ligament. It's possible he wasn't 100 percent for the beginning of the season when he became a starter.
In Brice, the Bears have a player who once displayed plenty of raw ability coming out of Louisiana Tech.
He didn't get a combine invitation but at a pro day he had run a 4.44 40-yard dash.
Pro day 40 times are notoriously faster than at the combine, but in other more reputable areas he completely excelled. Brice did a 41-1 1/2-inch vertical leap, which would have been best at his position at the combine if he had done it there. His broad jump of 11-foot-1 would have been second at the combine. He also had 21 reps in the bench, which also would have been second for safeties at the combine.
At the worst, the Bears have a candidate for special teams.
Before becoming a 2018 starter, Brice played on coverage teams and tied for second on the Packers in special teams tackles as a rookie in 2016. He added two more special teams tackles in 2017 before the ankle injury cut his season short after six games.
The reason the Bears wound up with so many former Packers is more happenstance than a planned play of any sort.
Still, there would be several satisfied ex-Packers if they're able to make the roster in this strange football season, and then find a way to beat the team which gave up on them.
Brice might be right there at the front of that line.
Kentrell Brice at a Glance
Louisiana Tech S
Height: 5-foot-11
Weight: 200
Key Numbers: Brice made 100 career tackles in three Green Bay seasons.
Roster Chances: 1.5 on a scale of 1-5 with 5 being the most.
2020 Projection: Cut victim.
Twitter: BearDigest@BearsOnMaven
