Chicago Bears' 53-man depth chart projection after the 2023 NFL Draft
Ryan Poles and Matt Eberflus have used the draft and free agency to build one of the NFL's most-improved rosters. While we are months away from meaningful football, we are one step closer to knowing what the 2023 version of the Bears will look like. We already projected what the Chicago Bears 53-man roster will […]
Ryan Poles and Matt Eberflus have used the draft and free agency to build one of the NFL's most-improved rosters. While we are months away from meaningful football, we are one step closer to knowing what the 2023 version of the Bears will look like.
We already projected what the Chicago Bears 53-man roster will look like come September, now it's time to map out what the depth chart will be structured with that Week 1 roster.
Note: Players with single asterisk (*) are 2023 draft picks and players with double asterisks (**) are 2023 undrafted free agents.
| Position | Starter(s) | Backups |
|---|---|---|
Quarterback | Justin Fields | P.J. Walker |
Running Back | D’Onta Foreman Khari Blasingame | Khalil Herbert Travis Homer Roschon Johnson* |
Wide Receiver | Chase Claypool Darnell Mooney D.J. Moore | Dante Pettis Tyler Scott* Equanimeous St. Brown |
Tight End | Cole Kmet Robert Tonyan | Jake Tonges |
Offensive Line | Nate Davis Teven Jenkins Braxton Jones Cody Whitehair Darnell Wright* | Larry Borom Ja’Tyre Carter Alex Leatherwood Lucas Patrick |
Defensive Line | Andrew Billings Trevis Gipson Justin Jones DeMarcus Walker | Gervon Dexter* Rasheem Green Dominique Robinson Zacch Pickens* |
Outside Linebacker | T.J. Edwards | Jalen Harris** DeMarquis Gates Sterling Weatherford |
Inside Linebacker | Tremaine Edmunds | Jack Sanborn Noah Sewell* |
Cornerback | Kyler Gordon Jaylon Johnson Tyrique Stevenson* | Jaylon Jones Terell Smith* Kindle Vildor |
Safety | Jaquan Brisker Eddie Jackson | Adrian Colbert Elijah Hicks, |
Kicker | Cairo Santos | |
Punter | Ryan Anderson | |
Long snapper | Patrick Scales | |
Kick returner | Dante Pettis | Travis Homer |
Punt returner | Dante Pettis | Tyrique Stevenson* |
There will be plenty of position battles to monitor in training camp. The cornerback position will be fun to watch with so many talented young players.
There could be a surprise at the wide receiver position as well as rookie Tyler Scott will challenge Velus Jones Jr. for his job. By re-signing Dante Pettis, Chicago could cut bait with the 2022 third rounder, especially considering rookie CB Tyrique Stevenson has experience returning punts.
Overall, the Bears now look like a roster capable of winning some ball games. Poles has had an excellent offseason adding talent at positions of need. Bears fans should start to see the light with this young core in the 2023 season.
