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Bears Take Look at Former Starting Tackle Among Others With Tryouts

Among seven players who had tryouts at Halas Hall was a third-round tackle pick and a few defensive backs, besides a formerJeffery Simmons Titans teammate.
Gene Chamberlain|
Former 49ers offensive tackle Brandon Parker blocks against Tennessee. Parker had a tryout at Halas Hall with several others.
Former 49ers offensive tackle Brandon Parker blocks against Tennessee. Parker had a tryout at Halas Hall with several others. | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

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Chicago Bears

Former Jeffery Simmons Tennessee Titans teammate Jordan Elliott wasn't the only player the Bears took a look at Tuesday during a bye-week tryout at Halas Hall.

A group of players worked out, including a former offensive line starter for the Raiders and 49ers.

Linebacker John Bullock, defensive back Darren Hall, tackle Ryan Hayes, center Michael Niese, tackle Brandon Parker and defensive back Robert Rochell all had Halas Hall tryouts, per the NFL daily personnel ticker.

Parker is 31 years old and was a third-round pick of the Raiders in the 2018 draft. He started 33 games out of the 59 he played for the Raiders from 2018-2023, including 12 at right tackle as a rookie and 13 in 2021 at that position.

A torn triceps kept him from playing in 2022. An undisclosed injury cost him most of 2023 when he went on injured reserve. He was out of the league in 2024 and 2025 and the 49ers had him on the practice squad this training camp before cutting him.

Hall, a cornerback and safety, was a fourth-round Falcons pick who spent four years there, then played for Arizona two years and Washington this season before being released. He had 12 starts in 49 games and 95 tackles.

Hayes was a seventh-round tackle for the Dolphins who came out of Michigan in the 2024 draft but has also been with the Colts, Titans, Falcons and Panthers, mostly on practice squads. He has appeared in only one game.

Niese has some familiarity with Bears coach Ben Johnson as a former backup lineman for him in Detroit in 2023 and 2024. He was also with Detroit in 2025. He has been in 26 games without a start.

Rochell is a long-time NFL backup defensive back who was on the active roster for the Rams, Packers, Cowboys and Panthers between 2021-25. He made his only career interception as a rookie in 2021. He made 31 career tackles.

Bullock played in 15 games last season for Tampa Bay, playing a role in special teams.

Elliott would fill a Bears need but ...

Elliott was easily the most well known of the group after he had 11 tackles this season with Tennessee in the first five games and 159 for his career in 102 games with 65 starts for the Browns, 49ers and Titans. He was said to have pulled out a gun after an incident several days earlier at the practice facility.

“He’s a good man, made a terrible, had a terrible lapse in judgment that I recognize as a call for help more than a criminal act,” Titans coach Robert Saleh told Titans reporters, according to NFL.com. "He’s never committed a crime in his entire life and he pulled a gun, in the parking lot.”

While Saleh defended Elliott's character, he had to admit this lapse in judgment wasn't allowed.

“Unfortunately, rules are rules with regard to guns on property, and sometimes it’s far greater than the knee-jerk reaction of kicking somebody when they’re down,” Saleh said.

The Bears could actually use someone like Elliott on their practice squad, as a 325-pounder who can be a run stopper when needed against teams with power running games and big lines.

Most Bears defensive linemen are in the range of 300 to 310 pounds. Their roster is fairly well packed on the defensive line with Simmons, Montez Sweat, Austin Booker, Shemar Turner, Neville Gallimore, Grady Jarrett, rookie Jordan van den Berg, James Lynch, Jayden Loving and Daniel Hardy.

They also could have defensive end Dayo Odeyingbo back from injured reserve when they return to face the Saints. He was suffering from a quad injury and hasn't played since the Oct. 11 loss at Green Bay.

Whether they would deem Elliott the risk is the big question. He does have rather solid backing from a reputable character witness in the Titans' head coach.


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Gene Chamberlain
GENE CHAMBERLAIN

Gene Chamberlain has covered the Chicago Bears full time as a beat writer since 1994 and prior to this on a part-time basis for 10 years. He covered the Bears as a beat writer for Suburban Chicago Newspapers, the Daily Southtown, Copley News Service and has been a contributor for the Daily Herald, the Associated Press, Bear Report, CBS Sports.com and The Sporting News. He also has worked a prep sports writer for Tribune Newspapers and Sun-Times newspapers.

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