Bears insider brings underrated roster issue to light that could have major consequences if the current options don’t pan out
The Chicago Bears had two long snapper options in the building during rookie minicamp vying for the open position, and head coach Ben Johnson addressed concerns about neither player playing a snap in the NFL.
The Chicago Bears’ rookie minicamp is in the books after hosting two sessions over the weekend to finally get a chance to see the seven draft selections, undrafted free agents, and tryout players take the field and work with the coaching staff.
The Bears’ staff sounded really encouraged about how the group looked this year compared to the year before going into rookie minicamp and saw some players turn some heads on the field, such as veteran tryout WR Scotty Miller who earned a roster spot. As for the rookies, the new batch of players look really promising in Dillon Thieneman, Logan Jones, Zavion Thomas, etc.
Coming out of the weekend, Bears insider Brad Biggs did share one concern he has about a position many tend to overlook in the NFL.
“The long snapper thing is interesting from the standpoint that they don’t have a guy that’s snapped in an NFL game on the 90-man roster,” Biggs said on 104.3 The Score. “That’s the kind of thing that can keep, especially special teams, coaches up at night worrying about inexperienced players in critical roles.”
While many might discredit the argument, Biggs’ point is worth bringing up. In fact, Biggs even brought it up during the press conference with head coach Ben Johnson, who confirmed it’s something the staff is aware of.
Chicago Bears head coach Ben Johnson addresses the long snapper battle and any concerns at that spot
“There is certainly an element of, that is a phase that you overlook a lot of times,” Johnson explained. “I think it’s a good point that [Biggs made]. We need to feel really comfortable about that position because a mistake on special teams usually wins or loses ball games for you. That’s an area that Coach Hightower, Coach Blevins, and myself, Ryan [Poles], we’ve all been in constant dialogue with how we want to attack it here this offseason.”
The Bears had two long snappers in the building over the weekend in Luke Elkin and rookie UDFA Beau Gardner. Elkin joined the team in 2025 as a UDFA after playing at Iowa and even had history snapping balls to punter Tory Taylor in college, however he competed for the starting job and lost against veteran Scott Daly. As for Gardner, he earned the Patrick Mannelly Award in 2025, which is given to the top snapper in the FBS.
“We feel good about the two guys that we have in the building,” Johnson added. “It’s up to one of them to grab a job that’s up for grabs right now. If we can’t get that done the way that we need it done, then of course there’s other options out there.”
It’s worth bringing this up because Daly, the team’s starting long snapper from the last two seasons, just signed with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers on Monday after getting a veteran tryout at the team’s rookie minicamp.
If all else fails and the two young players can’t impress the staff, the Bears would have to go out and find an external player off the market.
Again, fans might scoff at this topic, but it really is something for the staff to pay attention to throughout the rest of the offseason. Special teams can win or lose a game, as the Bears of all teams learned the past few years. This is a real situation to watch.