Ryan Pace's Bears Remain Popular

The 2021 Bears amounted to nothing in the NFC North standings but they seem to be as popular around the league as they are in Atlanta.

The Dallas Cowboys are signing 40-year-old left tackle Jason Peters according to an NFL Network report. Peters started 15 games last year for the Bears. This after former Bears defensive lineman Mario Edwards Jr. signed with the Jacksonville Jaguars.

The Bears had cut Edwards during roster reduction last week in a move that saved them about $1 million in cap space. Edwards had played two seasons as a situational pass rusher for them since signing as the 2020 season was beginning after he'd been cut by New Orleans.

Peters was the highest-graded Bears offensive lineman last year according to Pro Football Focus grades. He is now in his 18th NFL season, after playing from 2009-2020 for Philadelphia and his first five seasons in Buffalo. He'll be starting out on the practice squad and working into shape as a possible replacement or depth after Dallas lost left tackle Tyron Smith to injury.

The Bears' youth movement made bringing him back more of a detriment to the rebuild, and at his age and weight it's unlikely he could have fit into the new wide zone blocking scheme they run.

When all of the cuts cleared in Atlanta, where former Bears GM Ryan Pace is in place as a personnel executive and former Bears GM Phil Emery is a scout, there were seven former Bears on the roster and two more on the practice squad.

The former Bears who are on the Atlanta roster are Damien Williams, Elijah Wilkinson, Cordarrelle Patterson, Nick Kwiatkoski, Germaine Ifedi, Abdullah Anderson and Damiere Byrd. Safety Teez Tabor and tight end Mycole Pruitt are the former Bears who are on the practice squad.

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