Previewing Bears depth chart after 2020 NFL draft

(4-30 UPDATE: This article has been updated after the signings of Tashaun Gipson, Ted Ginn Jr. and Trevor Davis.)

It is very likely that Nick Foles will take over as the starting quarterback for the Bears, possibly as soon as Week 1. However, Chicago has made it clear that, to start their open quarterback competition, Mitchell Trubisky will begin as the starter.

While not a massive overhaul, there has been improvement in terms of the team’s weapons compared to last year. Cole Kmet and Jimmy Graham provide for a better tight end duo than the oft-injured Trey Burton and Adam Shaheen, who is momentarily ahead of players like J.P. Holtz and Jesper Horsted but is arguably more likely to get cut.

Allen Robinson and Anthony Miller provide a rock-solid duo at receiver, especially if Miller can build upon the second half of his 2019 season. The ‘Z’ receiver spot will likely a battle between youngsters Riley Ridley and Darnell Mooney and post-draft signing Ted Ginn Jr., so it will be interesting to see if youth or experience will prevail there. The lack of depth behind David Montgomery at running back is a bit worrisome though, since Tarik Cohen isn’t a heavy-load back. It might not hurt for the Bears to bring in a free agent to compete with Ryan Nall and their two undrafted rookies, Artavis Pierce and Napoleon Maxwell.

The starting offensive line seems fairly set in stone, as Germain Ifedi brings much more starting experience than any other guard the Bears currently have on the roster. Jason Spriggs could bring some solid value as a swing tackle, but Charles Leno Jr. and Bobby Massie’s starting roles are safe for this season. It could be interesting to see the likes of Spriggs, Alex Bars, Rashaad Coward—who is technically a tackle but had to spend much of 2019 at guard—Arlington Hambright and Lachavious Simmons battle for roster spots as depth pieces.

As it stands right now, the Bears’ defensive starting lineup appears to be fairly set in stone.

Akiem Hicks and Eddie Goldman have their starting spots lined up, and Bilal Nichols will likely get the slight edge over Roy Robertson-Harris, who has been used mostly in a rotational role. The depth along the defensive line isn’t all that great though, so look for undrafted free agent Trevon McSwain out of Duke to push for a backup spot.

The edge rusher position was improved significantly in the offseason, as Leonard Floyd and Aaron Lynch were replaced by Robert Quinn, rookie Trevis Gipson and Barkevious Mingo. Quinn should form a dangerous pass-rushing duo alongside Khalil Mack, while Gipson and Mingo bring some much-needed depth. The Bears have another talented duo at inside linebacker in Roquan Smith and Danny Trevathan, but the depth behind them is poor with the departures of both Nick Kwiatkoski and Kevin Pierre-Louis. That could open up an opportunity for former Florida Atlantic linebacker Rashad Smith to steal a roster spot as an undrafted rookie.

Kyle Fuller and Eddie Jackson are among the best at their respective positions in the secondary, and second-round pick Jaylon Johnson is pro-ready enough that he could take the starting cornerback spot alongside Fuller from Week 1. Buster Skrine is also safe as the team’s starting nickel back this year. Tashaun Gipson was brought in as a post-draft addition, and he will likely pass Deon Bush on the depth chart to take over the strong safety spot.

The backup cornerback spots will also be tough to predict, with as many as seven of the cornerbacks after the aforementioned starters staking reasonable claims to make the roster. Among those on the bubble could be Tre Roberson, Artie Burns, Stephen Denmark and Duke Shelley, who is danger of losing his second-string nickel role to Kindle Vildor. Chicago could move one of their cornerbacks to safety, but it will be a hard-fought battle until the regular season begins to claim those last one or two spots on the roster.

The Bears’ special teams roles are set in stone, barring injury. Pat O’Donnell and Patrick Scales have no competition for their respective jobs, and Eddy Piñeiro played well enough that his job is in little to no danger, even with Ramiz Ahmed on the roster. Chicago’s two returner spots are also filled up with two of the best kick and punt returners in the league in Cordarrelle Patterson and Tarik Cohen, respectively.