Letizia: Bears 53-Man Roster (And Season Stats) Prediction

With the final preseason game in the books, the 2019 regular season has officially begun. 53-man rosters will be released soon, but I decided to take one more crack at predicting who will be the 53 men to suit up against the Green Bay Packers in Week 1. I also took a shot at predicting the stat lines for the entire team.

Quarterback: 2

1. Mitch Trubisky
2. Chase Daniel

Last Cut: Tyler Bray
Baring an unexpected retirement to our franchise quarterback these will be the two players on the roster come Sept. 5. If Trubisky goes down, I do not have faith in Daniel to take over. The Bears will need to find a young quarterback next offseason to groom as Daniel’s replacement but for now he’s the guy.

Running back: 4

1. David Montgomery
2. Tarik Cohen
3. Mike Davis
4. Kerrith Whyte Jr.

Last Cut: Ryan Nall
Montgomery, Cohen and Davis form a three-headed monster in the backfield, with each bringing their own strengths and weaknesses to the position. Whyte barely beats out Nall as his speed and special teams value gives him the edge. He also has a higher ceiling than Nall and is less likely to make it to the practice squad.
We saw last year that Matt Nagy liked to get Taquan Mizzell involved in the offense from time to time. Whyte should be able to provide more value in this role than Mizzell did, although Mizzell didn’t exactly set a high bar.

Wide Receiver: 7

1. Allen Robinson
2. Taylor Gabriel
3. Anthony Miller
4. Cordarrelle Patterson
5. Riley Ridley
6. Javon WIms
7. Marvin Hall

It’s crazy to see how much the wide receiver position has changed in just a few short offseasons. Robinson, Gabriel and Miller are all legit starters while Ridley and Wims give the unit some intriguing upside. Patterson and Hall provide great special teams value.
In regards to Patterson, look for him to get some snaps at running back as well. This is clearly a strength for the Bears and a position where if there are injuries, they should still be in good shape.
Last Cut: Jordan Williams-Lambert

Tight End: 4

1. Trey Burton
2. Adam Shaheen
3. Ben Braunecker
4. Bradley Sowell

Last Cut: Ian Bunting
Burton, Shaheen and Braunecker are locks for the roster. Burton had an up and down first season in Chicago, but I believe he can still take the next step in this offense. Shaheen just needs to stay healthy and I believe he can be a quality second tight end and red zone threat.
Bunting flashed some good and bad in the preseason. He has some potential, but his blocking and special teams play needs to improve. If the Bears decide to go with five tight ends, they could decide to keep Dax Raymond, who is a better blocker than Bunting and a more natural backup to the oft-injured Shaheen.

Offensive Line: 9

1. Charles Leno
2. Cody Whitehair
3. James Daniels
4. Kyle Long
5. Bobby Massie
6. Ted Larsen
7. Rashaad Coward
8. Alex Bars

Last Cut: Cornelius Lucas
The top eight offensive linemen are pretty set, but there is a large drop off after that. While they have decent depth on the interior with Larsen and Bars, their tackle depth is very worrisome. Coward has not proven he can compete against other teams backups let alone starters. TJ Clemmings was looking like the swing tackle before suffering a season-ending injury.
They moved Bars to left tackle in the third preseason against 3rd and 4th stringers and he only looked ok. It is best for his long term development that they keep him at guard. After all, he might be starting there next season if they decide to move on from Long. This might be a position they need to address from a veteran cap casualty.
Offensive Total: 25

Defensive Line: 5

1. Akiem Hicks
2. Eddie Goldman
3. Bilal Nichols
4. Roy Robertson-Harris
5. Abdullah Anderson

Last Cut: Nick Williams and Jon Bullard
Hicks and Goldman remain your starters with Nichols opposite them in base defense. Nichols should also rotate in more often in nickel, giving Goldman and Hicks a breather. Robertson-Harris provides pass rush potential and the ability to play on the edge in a pinch.
Anderson is the only real surprise on this roster.
Unlike Bullard, he is able to backup Goldman at nose tackle and provides more pass rush potential and upside than Williams. I really like what I’ve seen from Anderson this preseason. He might never be a star but he is well worth a roster spot.

Watching the Bears game on Thursday and one under the radar player stood out. In my rewatch I was even more impressed with second year defensive lineman Abdullah Anderson. Not flashy but a solid player who has a future in the NFL. THREAD:

— Stephen Letizia (@StephenLetizia) August 11, 2019

Outside linebacker: 5

1. Khalil Mack
2. Leonord Floyd
3. Aaron Lynch
4. Isaiah Irving
5. James Vaughters

Last Cut: Chuck Harris
Remember when the Raiders traded Khalil Mack to the Bears? That was cool. Floyd will start opposite Mack in what many are hoping is (finally) his breakout season. Lynch and Irving provide solid backups and don’t rule out Robertson-Harris getting some snaps here as well. Vaughters was my 53rd guy and he barely edged out Ian Bunting and Dax Raymond at tight end because he has more special teams value.

Inside Linebacker: 5

1. Roquan Smith
2. Danny Trevathan
3. Kevin Pierre-Louis
4. Nick Kwiatkoski
5. Joel Iyiegbuniwe

Last Cut: Josh Woods
Smith and Trevathan form one of the best inside linebacker tandems in the league. However, the depth behind them is shaky. Pierre-Louis and Kwiatkoski should be the primary backups with Iyiegbuniwe pretty much a special teams only player at this point. Woods flashed some potential but not enough to unseat Iyiegbuniwe for one of the final spots on the roster.
Iyiegbuniwe was one of the Bears best special teams players last season and he should only get better this year. If he’s pressed into duty defensively, the Bears could be in trouble. But you have to remember he played on the edge in college so is fairly new to the position.

Cornerback: 6

1. Kyle Fuller
2. Prince Amukamara
3. Buster Skrine
4. Kevin Toliver II
5. Duke Shelley
6. John Franklin III

Last Cut: Clifton Duck
Fuller and Amukamara return to solidify the corner position on the outside while Skrine takes over for Bryce Callahan. I don’t think anyone will argue that the Bears didn’t get worse with that exchange, but with the Bears front seven, Skrine should be more than acceptable.
The issue with this position is the lack of experience behind the starters. Toliver, Shelley and Franklin have some potential but if Fuller or Amukamara go down, they might look to bring in a veteran from the outside. They might even decide to do that before the season even starts to replace Franklin.

Safety: 4

1. Eddie Jackson
2. Ha Ha Clinton-Dix
3. Deon Bush
4. Sherrick McManis

Last Cut: Deandre Houston-Carson
Jackson proved he was one of the best safeties in the league last season, and I don’t see any reason he won’t take another step forward this season. Clinton-Dix was obviously signed to take over for Adrian Amos. Clinton-Dix has had an up and down career. If he can get back to the player he was early in his career, that could be an upgrade. If he’s the player he was the last two years, it is a downgrade.
Bush is the player on the roster who has made the most strides over the last year. A year ago at this time, I would have called him a below-average backup. Now, I am looking at him to potentially replace Clinton-Dix next season and be a solid starter. McManis continues to provide great special teams value and is more of a lock than most people realize.
Defensive Total: 25

Special Teams: 3

• Kicker: Eddie Pineiro
• Punter: Pat O’Donnell
• Long Snapper: Pat Scales

Eddie Pineiro wins the starting job for now. He has to be on the roster for five weeks to meet the trade requirements for the Bears to lose a seventh-round draft pick. If he struggles earlier in the year, look for them to make a change. But I am fairly confident he will be the kicker come Sept. 5. O’Donnell had a strong preseason and hopefully, he can continue his momentum into the regular season.

Practice Squad Candidates

• TE Ian Bunting
• TE Dax Raymond
• WR Thomas Ives
• OL Sam Mustipher
• CB Clifton Duck
• CB Michael Joseph
• OLB Chuck Harris
• QB Tyler Bray
• Not currently on roster
• Not currently on roster

Injured Reserve

• CB Stephen Denmark
• OT TJ Clemmings

Stat Predictions

Offensive Stats

Passing	Cmp	Att	cmp%	Yds	TD	INT	Passer Rating
Mitch Trubisky	401	589	68%	4,491	34	16	98.5

Rushing	Attempts	Yards	TD	Y/A
David Montgomery	198	858	9	4.3
Tarik Cohen	75	368	2	4.9
Mike Davis	65	254	1	3.9
Mitch Trubisky	61	311	3	5.1
Cordarrelle Patterson	25	118	2	4.7
Taylor Gabriel	10	52	0	5.2
Kerrith Whyte	7	32	0	4.6
Anthony Miller	3	9	0	3
Total	444	2002	17	4.5

Receiving	Receptions	Yards	TD	Y/R
Allen Robinson	72	901	7	12.5
Tarik Cohen	79	742	3	9.4
Trey Burton	63	740	8	11.7
Taylor Gabriel	44	463	3	10.5
Anthony Miller	52	699	5	13.4
David Montgomery	24	176	0	7.3
Cordarrelle Patterson	18	288	1	16
Riley Ridley	13	139	2	10.7
Adam Shaheen	13	113	4	8.7
Javon Wims	9	111	1	12.3
Mike Davis	9	71	0	7.9
Kerrith Whyte	2	29	0	14.5
Ben Braunecker	3	19	0	6.3
Total	401	4491	34	11.2

Defensive Stats

Defensive	Tackles	TFL	Sacks	INT	PBU
Roquan Smith	145	11	7	2	6
Danny Trevathan	92	6	3	2	4
Ha Ha Clinton Dix	77	2	1.5	4	10
Khalil Mack	70	18	14	0	2
Eddie Jackson	68	2	0	5	17
Prince Amukamara	54	1	0	2	9
Leonard Floyd	49	7	4.5	1	0
Akiem Hicks	48	11	7	0	0
Eddie Goldman	47	6	2	0	0
Buster Skrine	45	3	1	1	5
Kyle Fuller	42	2	0	4	18
Bilal Nichols	31	8	4.5	0	0
Roy Robertson-Harris	14	2	2	0	1
Kevin Tolliver	12	0	0	2	0
Duke Shelley	12	1	0	1	1
Aaron Lynch	12	4	1.5	0	0
Nick Kwiatkoski	11	1	0	0	0
Sherrick McManis	7	1	0	0	0
Isaiah Irving	6	0	0	0	0
Kevin Pierre-Louis	6	0	0	0	0
Joel Iyiegbuniwe	5	0	0	0	0
John Franklin III	4	0	0	0	0
Abdullah Anderson	3	0	0	0	0
James Vaughters	2	0	0	0	0