As the Bears face their first mandatory roster cut to 65 players by Tuesday, several Bears are on the bubble–or have already met the ax. Rosters must be trimmed to 53 players by Sept. 5.
The team already has cast an eye toward cuts, waiving safety Derrek Ballard and defensive tackle Charles Hill. More players will be under pressure to perform as the Bears play the Saints at Soldier Field on Friday.
Before training camp began, some members of the Bears organization predicted right tackle Aaron Gibson would perform well enough for John Tait to move over and anchor the left side. Offensive coordinator Terry Shea, in particular, effusively praised the 375-pound Gibson.
As preseason winds down, however, Gibson is not a certainty to make the 53-man roster.
The Bears aren’t likely to keep more than nine offensive linemen, and they might take a chance on a promising rookie such as tackle Rob Droege.
Knee soreness has slowed Gibson, and a poor showing in the first exhibition game against the Rams did little to build confidence in the one-time first-round draft pick who started 16 games last season.
Left tackle Qasim Mitchell, though hardly a model of consistency, has progressed quicker than Gibson, and that development led to locking Tait into the right-tackle spot. Gibson has worked some with the No. 3 unit behind swing tackle Steve Edwards.
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Depth charges.
At the beginning of training camp, the Bears were three-deep at almost every position.
But by Sept. 5, the NFL requires them–and all other teams–to be down to 53 players.
Players on the bubble.
(Note: Several players, such as Joe Tafoya and Charles Hill, already have been cut.)
OFFENSE
Position / 1st string / 2nd string / 3rd string
WR David Terrell, Justin Gage, Bernard Berrian
LT Qasim Mitchell, John Tait, Rob Droege
LG Rex Tucker (injured), Ruben Brown (No third-stringer)
C Olin Kreutz, Terrence Metcalf, Michael Keathley
RG Mike Gandy, Terrence Metcalf , Bryan Anderson
RT John Tait, Steve Edwards, Aaron Gibson
TE Desmond Clark, Dustin Lyman, John Gilmore
WR Bobby Wade, Ahmad Merritt (No third-stringer)
QB Rex Grossman, Jonathan Quinn, Craig Krenzel
FB Bryan Johnson, Jason McKie, Rabih Abdullah
RB Thomas Jones, Anthony Thomas, Adrian Peterson
DEFENSE
Position / 1st string / 2nd string / 3rd string
LDE Adewale Ogunleye, Claude Harriott, Israel Idonije
LDT Bryan Robinson, Tommie Harris, Tron LaFavor
RDT Alfonso Boone, Tank Johnson, Ian Scott
RDE Alex Brown, Michael Haynes, Alain Kashama
SLB Marcus Reese, Joe Odom, Bryan Knight
MLB B. Urlacher (injured), H. Hillenmeyer, Jerry Schumacher
WLB Lance Briggs, Leon Joe, Derrick Ballard
LCB Charles Tillman, Todd McMillon, Nathan Vasher
RCB R.W. McQuarters, Alfonso Marshall (No third-stringer)
SS Bobby Gray, Mike Green, Virgil Williams
FS Mike Brown, Todd Johnson, Cameron Worrell
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Edited by Phillip Thompson (plthompson@tribune.com) and Drew Sottardi (dsottardi@tribune.com)
