Bear Digest

What Bears might find from DJ Chark and other workout players

The process of sorting through available players with workouts has begun as the Bears had these six players in for a visit, and here's what they could see.
Gene Chamberlain|
Former Bears safety Tashaun Gipson breaks up a pass intended for DJ Chark.
Former Bears safety Tashaun Gipson breaks up a pass intended for DJ Chark. | Bob Self/Florida Times-Union via Imagn Content Services, LLC

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The players brought in by the Bears for workouts should excite few, and essentially this is a common thing done throughout the season at various times simply for the sake of gathering information.

It helps to know first hand who's available.

When they bring in a player like D.J. Chark it is going to attract attention because of name recognition but he hasn't had a good season since the pandemic year of 2020. The other players on the list are potential fill-ins for the training camp roster should they suffer injuries.

Looking at players where the team might be thin or have injuries immediately always can be beneficial, especially when camp starts. They're prepared to act in case of injuries.

Here are those who they looked at:

WR DJ Chark

A few days ago Chark was talking about retirement and maybe holding off because he could find a job with one of several teams near his home and he named them off. The Bears weren't one of them.

When someone is thinking about retirement in the NFL, they're already prepared for it.

However, Chark did have one season in Ben Johnson's offense in 2022 and made 30 catches for 502 yards and three touchdowns on 52 targets. He's been with four teams in the last four years.

Chark has had numerous injuries and has been punished more physically than many receivers his age. According to league injury reports, he had hip and groin injury concerns last year, elbow and hamstring issues in 2023, an ankle concern in 2022 and in 2021 he had the biggest injury of his career, a season-ending fractured ankle. There were shin, ribs, ankle and chest injuries in 2020, an ankle injury in 2019 and a quad injury in 2018.

At 6-foot-1, Chark would be one of the bigger receivers the Bears have at camp, but not bigger than Rome Odunze (6-3), Miles Boykin (6-3) or Samori Toure (6-1). He did run a 4.34 40 at the combine but that speed hasn't been as apparent as injuries took a toll. However, Chark has managed to maintain a high average yards per catch (14.4) throughout injuries and inactivity. He played only 105 snaps last year.

It would be a curious addition because the Bears have an abundance of talent at receiver now but Johnson does have a history of working players coming back from injuries elsewhere into his offense. He did it with Tim Patrick last year after Achilles and ACL injuries in successive years. Josh Reynolds' career seemed to bottom out but the Lions squeezed 38 and 40 catches out of him in successive years under Johnson. Reynolds went to Denver and Jacksonville last year and had only 13 catches.

Any time you have a first-round pick available who did have some productivity, it doesn't hurt to look.

TE Peyton Hendershot

A 6-foot-5, 254-pound former Cowboys undrafted free agent who had 20 receptions over three seasons with Dallas and Kansas City. Johnson said he liked what he saw from Joel Wilson in OTAs as a potential fourth tight end. They also have often-injured Stephen Carlson. Wilson doesn't have Hendershot's experience level.

TE Thomas Gordon

Northwestern's 6-5, 240-pound tight end last year who had 54 catches for 529 yards with two TDs in six seasons.

LB Chance Campbell

A sixth-round Titans pick out of Mississippi and Maryland, made three tackles in four games in 2023. He is coming off a season-ending torn ACL in 2024. It was the third straight year he had a knee injury.

WR Matt Landers

A 6-4, 200-pound bigger target who played at Georgia, Toledo and Arkansas. He averaged 19.6 yards per catch in college and went undraftd. The Seahawks, Panthers and Patriots signed him to their practice squads and released him. The Browns signed him to their roster and waived him. He hasn't appeared in an NFL regular-season game since leaving college at the end of 2022.

S Gervarrius Owens

A 2023 seventh-round Giants draft pick, the 6-foot, 200-pounder has appeared in five games for the Giants and Titans, with a tackle and fumble recovery. He made 208 tackles with four interceptions, 18 pass breakups, two forced fumbles and one recovered at Houston in college.

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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.