Chicago Bears’ first unofficial depth chart ahead of preseason Week 1 vs. Cleveland Browns includes a few surprises
The Chicago Bears have released the first unofficial depth chart ahead of the preseason opener and while this shouldn’t be treated as gospel, it does have some key takeaways to note.
The Chicago Bears released their first unofficial depth chart ahead of this weekend’s preseason opener against the Cleveland Browns, and while the document was compiled by the team’s communications department rather than the coaching staff, it largely reflects what we’ve seen at practice throughout the first 10-plus days of training camp.
A few important notes before digging in: PUP players are not listed on this depth chart. Those players are still rehabbing their respective injuries and working toward a return before the regular season. With that context, there are several key takeaways worth highlighting across both sides of the ball.
Offensive takeaways from the Chicago Bears’ first unofficial depth chart
Chicago’s depth chart is operating out of a 12-personnel base on offense, listing two starting tight ends in Cole Kmet and Colson Loveland with Rome Odunze and Luther Burden III as the two starting wide receivers, which was to be expected.
That 12-personnel alignment pushes Kalif Raymond and Jahdae Walker into reserve roles, with both listed above rookie Zavion Thomas and the rest of the wide receiver room. The wide receiver position will be one to watch throughout the preseason, particularly Walker, Kaden Davis, Scotty Miller, and newcomer Ray-Ray McCloud III, who was added earlier this week.
At center, Garrett Bradbury is listed as the official starter with no competition indicated between him and rookie Logan Jones. The real battle is at left tackle, where the depth chart lists Braxton Jones OR Jedrick Wills OR Kiran Amegadjie. Bears head coach Ben Johnson was hoping to ramp up the left tackle competition this week heading into the first preseason game, but Jones went down last week and has been day-to-day since, leaving Wills and Amegadjie to rotate against each other. Theo Benedet is listed as the backup at right tackle behind Darnell Wright.
Another spot I also found notable was at running back. The depth chart has Roschon Johnson listed as the RB3 behind D’Andre Swift and Kyle Monangai over Salvon Ahmed, Brittain Brown, and Coleman Bennett. I would have guessed Ahmed would have been the RB3 based on how things have looked at camp, but we’ll see how that changes.
Defensive takeaways from the Chicago Bears’ first unofficial depth chart
On the defensive side, Dayo Odeyingbo is listed as the starter at defensive end over Austin Booker. At the interior, Grady Jarrett and Gervon Dexter Sr. are the starters, but the backup listings are worth noting at DT. Veterans Neville Gallimore and Kentavius Street are slotted ahead of rookies Jordan van den Berg and Jayden Loving, despite van den Berg working with the first-team defense and Loving working with the second-team over the last couple of days.
The secondary is where things get particularly interesting due to all of the injuries. Cam Lewis is listed as the starting nickel cornerback, which was expected after the Bears signed safety Xavier Woods. Woods is listed as the backup behind Coby Bryant, but with Bryant dealing with an injury, Woods is in line to be the starting safety for Week 1.
Josh Blackwell, who has been working at nickel and is primarily a special teamer, is listed as a safety on this depth chart. That could show the added flexibility he could bring. However, the depth chart also had Skyler Thomas at nickel over safety, which was surprising. Perhaps Blackwell and Thomas should have been flipped.
Lastly, Malik Muhammad II is listed as the backup at outside cornerback behind Tyrique Stevenson. He’ll be another player to watch during the preseason as the coaching staff wants to see him work on the outside and potentially slide into the nickel.
Positions to watch in the preseason opener
The preseason opener against the Browns will provide plenty of clarity at several of these positions and it’s still yet to be determined if any of the starters will play.
The defensive back group is the headliner in terms of what to watch, with Muhammad, Terrell Smith, Thomas, and Anthony Johnson Jr. all needing to prove they can provide reliable secondary depth.
I’m also looking forward to seeing the rookie defensive tackles on the interior show out, and the wide receiver competition pick up for a potential sixth WR spot. Finally, it’ll be important to watch the left tackle rotation and how those players look.
