As many of you know, I wasn’t on last Saturday’s Bears-Titans postgame show, but, of course, Will DeWitt and Mason West had you covered.
If you haven’t already, check out their analysis of the game as well as their predictions for the final Bears 53-man roster.
I was able to watch the condensed version of the game a day later and here are a few takeaways.
- Justin Fields’ 20-yard touchdown pass to Jesper Horsted in the back right corner of the end zone was special. Fields felt the pocket collapsing, stepped up, moved right, kept his eyes down field and threw a ball to only where Horsted could make a play on the ball. It doesn’t get better than that, especially since there were three Titans defenders in the area.
- The starting Bears offensive line has plenty of work to do. Germain Ifedi looked like a guy who has missed a majority of training camp. And the entire unit didn’t move the Titans’ front seven off the line of scrimmage.
- Horsted had a game to remember: five receptions for 104 yards and three touchdowns. Horsted’s breakout game also validates that when I’m not watching, he goes off. In one of the training camp practices I didn’t attend, Horsted caught three touchdown passes and he did the same against the Titans on Saturday night.
- Marqui Christian, Joel Iyiegbuniwe and Trevis Gipson had a nice finish to the preseason. Christian finished with seven total tackles and was all over the field on Saturday night. Iyiegbuniwe looked like an entirely different linebacker, playing fast and aggressive and registering one tackle for loss. And Gipson continued to show off his pass rushing ability that has been flashing throughout camp. Gipson got around the Titans’ left tackle, hit the quarterback as he was throwing and Bears cornerback Tre Roberson intercepted the pass and returned it for a pick-6.
Now, here is my final prediction for this Bears 53-man roster.
As you will see, Mario Edwards Jr. and Tarik Cohen are not on the roster. Edwards will be suspended the first two games, and it looks likely that Cohen will start the season on the physically-unable-to-perform (PUP) list.
Also, Teven Jenkins is on initial roster, making him eligible to return from injured reserve this season. But the rookie will go on IR and that will open up a spot on the roster.
Quarterback (3):
- Andy Dalton
- Justin Fields
- Nick Foles
Running Back (3):
- David Montgomery
- Damien Williams
- Khalil Herbert
Offensive Line (10):
- Jason Peters
- Cody Whitehair
- Sam Mustipher
- James Daniels
- Germain Ifedi
- Larry Borom
- Elijah Wilkinson
- Alex Bars
- Lachavious Simmons
- Teven Jenkins (Only on the initial 53-man roster and then placed on IR.)
Wide Receiver (6):
- Allen Robinson
- Darnell Mooney
- Marquise Goodwin
- Damiere Byrd
- Rodney Adams
- Dazz Newsome
Tight End (4):
- Cole Kmet
- Jimmy Graham
- Jesse James
- J.P. Holtz
- Jesper Horsted (After Jenkins goes on IR, I have Horsted coming back and taking Jenkins’ spot.)
Defensive Line (5):
- Eddie Goldman
- Angelo Blackson
- Akiem Hicks
- Khyiris Tonga
- Bilal Nichols
Inside Linebacker (4):
- Roquan Smith
- Danny Trevathan
- Christian Jones
- Alec Ogletree
Outside Linebacker (5):
- Khalil Mack
- Robert Quinn
- Trevis Gipson
- Jeremiah Attaochu
- James Vaughters
Cornerback (5):
- Jaylon Johnson
- Kindle Vildor
- Artie Burns
- Duke Shelley
- Thomas Graham Jr. (Once Edwards’ two-game suspension is over, I have Graham being placed on the practice squad and Edwards taking his spot.)
- As you can see, I don’t have veteran Desmond Trufant making the team. He has missed a lot of practice time and didn’t play in the preseason. But he is still trying to cope with the death of his father, so it’s completely understandable. Who knows where Trufant is going to be mentally when or if he comes back. But in my prediction, I don’t have him making the team.
Safety (5):
- Eddie Jackson
- Tashaun Gipson
- Marqui Christian
- DeAndre Houston-Carson
- Deon Bush
Special Teams (3):
- Cairo Santos
- Pat O’Donnell
- Patrick Scales
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