Perhaps the Bears like rookie safety Craig Steltz more than they let on.  Today they might have helped pave his way to a starting job. 

The Bears have released safety Adam Archuleta .

With the Bears, Archuleta struggled in run support and pass coverage. He broke his hand in a Week 3 loss to the Dallas Cowboys, sat out one game, and then returned the following week. He eventually lost his starting job in late November to Brandon McGowan.

In his lone season in Chicago, Archuleta failed to revert to the form he displayed in St. Louis when Bears coach Lovie Smith and defensive coordinator Bob Babich were Rams assistants.

After an absolutely horrible season last year, the only thing that might have saved his spot was if the Bears could not find somebody they thought could come in and start.  Between Danieal Manning, Mike Brown, Kevin Payne and Craig Steltz they must have decided they had the guns to do so.