The Chicago Bears had a big all-around team win on Sunday against the Atlanta Falcons and it took big plays in all three phases to get the job done. Not only that, the Bears had to rely on a bunch of new faces in the process.

Five players made their season debuts for the Bears in Week 6, most notably the return of slot cornerback Kyler Gordon – who made some really impactful plays. It goes to show the level of depth the Bears have to overcome losses throughout the roster without missing a beat, and the high level of coaching this team has to have those players ready to step up.

When it comes to the 53-man roster, the Bears had to make some big moves over the last few days to activate the likes of Gordon, Shemar Turner, and Noah Sewell. And after Thursday night’s game, the Bears will have to free up another roster spot to bring back Montez Sweat off the suspended list.

But, there’s another potential roster move that the Bears will have to weigh and it’s a decision other teams will be monitoring closely.

Injuries opened the door for one overlooked player to step into the spotlight for the Bears in Weeks 5-6

With the injury to second-year running back Kyle Monangai, the Bears had to shift some things around in the backfield over the last two weeks. D’Andre Swift still served as the team’s top back, but the loss of Monangai opened the door for Roschon Johnson to get 18 carries over the last two weeks and be more of an offensive contributor.

“We have a lot of confidence in him,” head coach Ben Johnson said on ESPN1000. “He knows exactly what to do… I know all of our guys trust him. Coach (Eric) Studesville has done a phenomenal job just making sure he’s up to snuff and ready to go the last few weeks here. We have a lot of confidence in Roschon.”

And with Roschon Johnson taking a more offensive approach the last two weeks with Monangai out, the Bears needed someone to replace him on special teams and provide some depth in the backfield. So, the Bears turned to Zavier Scott and activated him off the practice squad for the last two games, and he especially made an impact on Sunday.

“He was all over the place,” Ben Johnson said of Scott. “Particularly on kickoff. Very difficult to block and made some significant plays for us there… Big day for him and I thought he played outstanding.”

Scott played a total of 21 snaps on special teams on kickoff coverage, kickoff return, punt coverage, and punt return in Week 6. He even made one of the biggest plays of the game when he forced a fumble on kickoff in the third quarter.

“You love Zavier, man,” Bears special teams coordinator Richard Hightower said. “First of all, unbelievable human being. He’s a better person than he is a football player. The kid is really driven, Christian kid, really straight-laced kid that has been in my office every day since he’s got here looking at his practice scout team reps. He comes up every day and looks at his practice scout team to see where he can get better even when he wasn’t active. What you see happening is work in the dark that came to the light… It’s always awesome when you see somebody that puts in the work and then they get rewarded for it.”

Zavier Scott certainly put a tough decision on the plate of the Chicago Bears coaching staff

Scott clearly has been turning heads around the building long before his impactful game against the Falcons. And with Monangai expected to be out again for Thursday’s game against the New England Patriots, it’s highly likely Scott gets the nod again as a practice squad call up.

After that, here’s where thing’s get tough for the Bears. Thursday’s game would be Scott’s third and final practice squad elevation. The Bears wouldn’t be able to use him again unless he’s activated to the 53-man roster, and once Monangai is back and Johnson returns to his usual role, the Bears might not even need Scott again after Thursday.

The practice squad elevation limit also tracks the player’s total elevations across the year with that team, so it’s not like the Bears could cut Scott and bring him back on to reset his elevations. The other concern is that team’s will soon be aware of his impact and consider poaching him from the Bears, especially with the coaches talking so openly about him in Chicago.

That’s the risk of having such a deep team and not being able to use certain guys that you’ve been developing. It’s a good thing, but also a bad thing, unless the Bears find a way to sign him to the 53-man roster. But again, there might not be an open spot right now for him to take, nor a long-term role.