Expect more roster shuffling: 5 takeaways from the Chicago Bears roster cuts and 53-man roster

The Chicago Bears' 53-man roster is set.

After three preseason games, two joint practices and countless training camp reps, the Bears have made their squad.

They're not done, however.

Here are five takeaways from the Bears' initial 53-man roster and the roster cuts the team had to make to get there. 

Bears opt for four tight ends

One of the four developments with the Bears was their final decision at their skill positions.

The Bears kept six wide receivers the last two years. This year, they kept four tight ends as they retained undrafted free agent Hayden Large. 

Plenty expected the Bears to retain wide receiver Kaden Davis. They chose Large and bolstered the tight end room instead.

It's no secret Bears coach Ben Johnson loves tight ends. Large shined in training camp doing the unheralded plays and by getting his hands dirty with plenty of things that don't show up on the stat sheet.

Johnson might just cook up some different plays with 14 personnel, using four tight ends at once. After all, when Johnson spoke about Large before the preseason games began, he raved on the tight end.

"There's a lot of fundamentally sound things that Hayden does naturally," Johnson said on August 8. "Very aggressive football player. And he loves football. Like you can just tell. He loves football and he's wired the right way. So that was a good, really good get for us at this point. But he's still young and he's a rookie. We'll see what he looks like against better competition."

Expect some more roster shuffling

Large did make the 53-man roster, but he was also injured in the final week of training camp. The Chicago Tribune reported he might be placed on a short-term injured reserve list and miss a minimum of four games.

The Bears also waived 2025 fourth-round pick Ruben Hyppolite II with an injury designation and released veteran Jack Sanborn. This leaves the Bears with just four linebackers on the roster.

Expect them to add more depth alongside Keyshaun Elliott, who was activated off the PUP list just this week.

It's also fair to keep an eye on left tackle Ozzy Trapilo and if Trapilo is placed on a short-term injured reserve, or if the Bears allow him to keep a roster spot as he continues his ramp up.

Look for the Bears to make those injured reserve decisions on Monday.

Undrafted free agents earned their spots

Of the Bears' final cuts, Large, Jamree Kromah, Skyler Thomas and Jayden Loving were not one of them.

Those four made the Bears’ 53-man roster and were all undrafted free agents at one point. Kromah was an undrafted free agent after the 2024 draft.

Kromah led the Bears with three sacks in the 2026 preseason. Large stood out in his own way, too.

Johnson has been open about how closely he was watching the safety position as the position battle raged on. Thomas clearly caught the coaching staff's eye, as he intercepted a pass in the preseason.

While Jordan van den Berg was the star of the preseason, Loving was someone who benefited from that. When van den Berg collapsed the passer pocket on a pass rush on Saturday, Loving finished the play with a sack. It's that ability to be in the right place at the right time which enamored Loving to the Bears.

The PUP list 

The Bears will start the year with Kyler Gordon, Noah Sewell and Shemar Turner on the PUP list. They'll miss at least the first four games of the 2026 season, and maybe more.

This is the latest in the Gordon saga, where the Bears have expressed frustration with Gordon's status and have said Gordon is equally frustrated with the situation.

The Bears keeping four linebackers opens an avenue for Noah Sewell to earn a backup spot on the team when he's healthy. He suffered an Achilles injury late in the 2025 season and needs more time.

Turner's torn ACL needs more time to recover, but when he is recovered he'll have a chance to compete on the defensive line as someone the coaches have said can play on the interior of the offense line and on the edges.