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The Bears have signed safety Tashaun Gipson to a one-year deal, Pro Football Talk’s Charean Williams reported on Thursday.
Gipson, who turns 30 in August, is entering his ninth season in the NFL. He spent the 2019 season with the Texans, starting 14 games at strong safety and recording 51 tackles, 8 pass deflections and three interceptions, one of which being returned for a touchdown. He was placed on the injured reserve near the end of the season for a back injury.
The Wyoming alum spent the previous three seasons as a member of the Jaguars, and he also played for the Browns during his first four years in the league, during which he tallied 14 interceptions and made a Pro Bowl appearance after the 2014 season. Gipson has had at least one interception in every season he has played in the NFL and has had at least three picks in a season four times. He has also started in 104 of the 112 games he has played during his professional career.
Houston released Gipson on Tuesday after playing just one year of a three-year, $22.55 million deal, and it appears the Bears swooped up quickly to add him. The veteran safety brings plenty of ball production and experience to the secondary, and he arguably enters as the favorite to win the starting strong safety position over Deon Bush. He forms a intriguing safety tandem alongside former All-Pro Eddie Jackson.
Gipson joins the likes of Ted Ginn Jr. and Trevor Davis as post-draft free agent signings the Bears have made this week. With this signing, the Bears have now reached their 90-man limit for their offseason roster.