Bears will regret moving on from a promising rookie after he was claimed by another team in the AFC
The Chicago Bears had to make some tough decisions to create the initial 53-man roster on Tuesday and the team will soon regret one decision they had to make.To trim the roster down to 53 players, the Bears opted to waive undrafted rookie tight end Brenden Bates with hopes of bringing him back on the […]
The Chicago Bears had to make some tough decisions to create the initial 53-man roster on Tuesday and the team will soon regret one decision they had to make.
To trim the roster down to 53 players, the Bears opted to waive undrafted rookie tight end Brenden Bates with hopes of bringing him back on the practice squad.
Those hopes were shut down on Wednesday after Bates was claimed by the New York Jets off the waiver wire.
The Bears only kept three veteran tight ends on the initial 53-man roster: Cole Kmet, Gerald Everett, and Marcedes Lewis while moving on from Bates, Tommy Sweeney, and Stephen Carlson.
Bates had a lot of fan support to make it through the final cuts based on his strong play during the preseason. Given Shane Waldron's heavy tight end usage, it was shocking to see the Bears not give Bates or another tight end a spot on the roster.
Ultimately, the Bears tried to be cute and hope Bates would go unclaimed to be able to bring him back but it blew up in the team's face. Now the Bears will have to search for another young tight end to develop on the practice squad, with Sweeney and Carlson being the first options in consideration.
Bates would have made for the perfect developmental tight end to keep on the team in some capacity. Instead, he will join the Jets tight end room which features Tyler Conklin and Jeremy Ruckert on the 53-man roster.
The former Kentucky pass catcher was the highest graded PFF rookie tight end during the preseason with an 85.8 grade while adding six receptions on seven targets for 100 receiving yards. He also had a 77.0 pass blocking grade and 74.9 run blocking grade.
The Bears did not make any claims on the waiver wire, but have already begun making signings to fill out the practice squad. The team is also expected to make even more changes to the initial 53-man roster including placing long snapper Patrick Scales on the injured reserve and replacing him with full back Khari Blasingame on the roster.
Bears Practice Squad Tracker: Young talent returns to the team after cut down day
Another opportunity to continue their development.
