4 Chicago Bears Who Could be Surprising Roster Cuts

The Bears shored up a few key weaknesses through free agency and put them in a position where they can approach the draft with a true Best Player Available (BPA) approach. They are also in a pretty good spot to continue adding talent, with four picks in the top 89 selections.

A few players were put on notice with those signings, and their roster status might be holding on by a thread at this time next month. Some of them barely survived the roster bubble last season, and their odds of doing so in 2026, barring any movement at their respective position in the draft, appear slim at best.

Which players could be on the wrong side of the bubble come September?

Kiran Amegadjie

I'm pretty confident that Kiran Amegadjie was player 53 last year. They kept 11 offensive linemen and five offensive tackles. That doesn't happen. Well, it doesn't happen unless a team simply isn't ready to give up on the 75th overall pick of the previous year's draft, anyway.

With Amegadjie not showing much of anything through his first two years, and the team signing Jedrick Wills in free agency (and bringing back Theo Benedet), I think the door has been slammed shut on him living up to his third-round draft slot. I feel like he'll be on the outside looking in come Week One.

Ruben Hyppolite II

I think Hyppolite has a better chance of making the roster than Amegadjie (for the same reason I mentioned above regarding his draft status), but he's FAR from a roster lock. Would it hurt to cut a fourth-round pick from last year? Sure, but not as much as it would be to keep him around just because he was a semi-high pick.

The team heavily invested in the linebacker position in free agency, signing Devin Bush, D'Marco Jackson, and Jack Sanborn. The latter is definitely not a roster lock, either, but I think his impact on special teams will be enough to keep him around. While I could see Hyppolite making the roster if TJ Edwards and Noah Sewell aren't available for the season opener (or if they end up trading Edwards), his status will definitely be in trouble if they add to the room in the draft.

Roschon Johnson

I really think this might be the year they do it. I was really excited when the Bears drafted Roschon Johnson three years ago. I thought he was going to be a downright steal in the fourth round. Unfortunately, the most promising run of his career (a bruising 24-yarder) came in his first PREseason game. He's fallen well below expectations from that point onward.

Johnson was a healthy scratch for most of last season. I've officially given up on his ability to make good on Chicago's investment in him. While he could stick around due to his special teams value, I think they can find someone else to fill that role while also providing more juice (if necessary) in a change-of-pace role.

Kentavius Street

I know they just signed Kentavius Street and James Lynch to shore up the depth on the defensive interior, but I honestly don't know if either player will stick around. While teams usually like to keep more than four defensive tackles, I'm not sure it'll be necessary with Chicago already having two defensive ends with enough size to play on the inside (Dayo Odeyingbo and Shemar Turner).

Street has played in 85 games over his career and is usually good for a few sacks every year. However, I'm not sure they'll have enough space to keep him around. I think they'll address the defensive tackle position in the draft, and he might be the odd man out as a result.

(Very Early) 53-Man Roster Prediction:

QB: Caleb Williams, Tyson Bagent, Case Keenum

RB: D'Andre Swift, Kyle Monangai, (2026 Rookie or Brittain Brown)

WR: Rome Odunze, Luther Burden III, Kalif Raymond, Jahdae Walker, (2026 Rookie)

TE: Colston Loveland, Cole Kmet, Stephen Carlson

LT: Braxton Jones, Jedrick Wills,

LG: Joe Thuney, Jordan McFadden

C: Garrett Bradbury, (2026 Rookie)

RG: Jonah Jackson, Luke Newman

RT: Darnell Wright, Theo Benedet

DE: Montez Sweat, (2026 Rookie), Austin Booker, Dayo Odeyingbo, Shemar Turner, Daniel Hardy

DT: Grady Jarrett, (2026 Rookie), Gervon Dexter, Neville Gallimore

LB: Devin Bush, D'Marco Jackson, TJ Edwards, (2026 Rookie), Jack Sanborn

CB: Jaylon Johnson, Kyler Gordon, Tyrique Stevenson, (2026 Rookie), Terell Smith, Josh Blackwell, Zah Frazier

S: Coby Bryant, (2026 Rookie), Cam Lewis, Elijah Hicks

Special teams: Cairo Santos, Tory Taylor, Luke Elkin

IR: Ozzy Trapilo, Noah Sewell