Bears WR Keenan Allen (heel) missed his second straight practice on Thursday. HC Matt Eberflus downplayed the issue on Wednesday, calling Allen's absence then more of a rest day. But his status will be worth checking on again when we get Chicago's final injury report on Friday afternoon. The Bears, of course, will likely be without WR Rome Odunze (knee) for Sunday night's game vs. the Texans.
Bears WR Rome Odunze avoided a potential long-term knee injury during Week 1. He has been upgraded to day-to-day from week to week. HC Matt Eberflus indicated that it was not a serious injury. Odunze may be able to play in Week 2.
Bears WR Rome Odunze sustained an MCL sprain in Sunday's win over the Titans. He's now week-to-week, according to multiple reports.
Bears WR Rome Odunze came out of Sunday's win over the Titans with a knee injury, HC Matt Eberflus said Monday. Odunze is scheduled for an MRI to get a better look at the damage. Eberflus said there was "a level of concern" regarding the injury, but didn’t give any other details, per insider Scott Bair. We'll update Odunze's status as soon as we know more.
Bears QB Caleb Williams didn't get to 100 passing yards in his debut against the Titans on Sunday. He completed just 14 of 29 attempts (48%) for 93 yards (3.2 YPA), 0 TDs, and 0 INTs. Williams flashed his mobility and arm strength on a few occasions. And WR Keenan Allen dropped a would-be six-yard TD. But Williams missed multiple downfield throws and had a few passes batted down at the line of scrimmage.
Bears Edge Montez Sweat (toe) is active for today's game against the Titans. This seemed likely after he finished the week with a full Friday practice. Go ahead and play Sweat as planned in an upside matchup.
Bears RB Roschon Johnson is a healthy scratch for today's opener vs. the Titans. That leaves RBs D'Andre Swift, Khalil Herbert, and Travis Homer dressed for Chicago. We'll see what the workload split looks like under new OC Shane Waldron, but Swift is the only viable Week 1 fantasy play. We'd expect Johnson to work into the backfield mix if Swift or Herbert miss time this season, but he's droppable in shallow fantasy leagues.
Bears WR Keenan Allen (heel) is active for today’s game vs. the Titans. He was a full-go in practice on Friday, when HC Matt Eberflus said Allen looked great. We’re not expecting the heel to be an issue today.
Bears WR Keenan Allen (heel) is expected to play vs. the Titans today, according to ESPN's Adam Schefter. Allen is officially listed as questionable, but HC Matt Eberflus said Friday that Allen "looks great" (and allegedly wasn't even aware he was on the injury report). The heel shouldn't be an issue in today's season opener.
Bears Edge Montez Sweat is questionable for Sunday's opener against the Titans with a toe injury. He finished the week with a full practice, though, after limited workouts Wednesday and Thursday. HC Matt Eberflus called the outlook for Sweat "good," though, according to Josh Schrock of NBC Sports Chicago. The Bears have also deemed Edge Darrell Taylor (foot) and DT Demarcus Walker (groin) questionable.
Bears WR Keenan Allen (heel) is listed as questionable for Sunday’s game vs. the Titans. He practiced all week, including a full workout on Friday, so we’re fully expecting Allen to play. He sits in low WR3 range in the Week 1 WR Rankings.
Bears TE Cole Kmet caught one of two targets from QB Caleb Williams for 26 yards in Saturday's preseason game vs. the Bills. But the big story was Kmet's usage. He and TE Gerald Everett split time, with both running a route on five of Williams' eight dropbacks (62.5%). Everett actually out-snapped Kmet 14 to 11.
Bears RB D'Andre Swift has been a camp standout, particularly in the passing game, according to The Athletic's Kevin Fishbain.
The Bears on Tuesday reached agreement with WR D.J. Moore on a four-year contract extension worth $110 million. ESPN's Courtney Cronin reports that it includes $82.6 million in guarantees. Moore had two years remaining on his existing contract, which already had him set for nearly $16 million in salary. The extension carries him through 2029.
The Bears nabbed WR Rome Odunze with the ninth pick of the NFL Draft. Odunze led the Huskies in catches and receiving TDs in 2021 and then broke out as a redshirt sophomore in 2022 with the arrival of OC Ryan Grubb and QB Michael Penix. Odunze tallied 75 catches, 1,145 yards, and seven TDs that year, while ranking top-45 among 286 qualifying WRs in both Pro Football Focus receiving grade and yards per route. He took another giant leap forward this past season, cranking out an FBS-high 1,640 yards and 13 TDs on 92 receptions. Odunze ranked eighth among 286 qualifying WRs in Pro Football Focus receiving grade and 18th in yards per route. And he did it all despite suffering a broken rib and punctured lung in his fifth game. Odunze boosted his draft stock with a better-than-expected Combine showing, earning a 9.92 Relative Athletic Score at 6’3 and 212 pounds. A polished route runner with excellent ball skills, there are shades of Davante Adams in Odunze’s game. He looks ready to make an immediate impact and should quickly emerge as a high-volume target. Odunze will have trouble piling up targets as a rookie, with WRs D.J. Moore and Keenan Allen around. But Allen's not a good bet to remain in the picture beyond 2024. If this landing spot makes Odunze slip at all in your dynasty rookie draft -- take advantage.
The Bears selected USC QB Caleb Williams with the first overall pick in the 2024 NFL Draft. A five-star recruit and the No. 2 QB in the 2021 recruiting class, Williams took over as Oklahoma’s starter midway through his freshman campaign. He finished that year with 9.1 yards per pass attempt and a sterling 21:4 TD-to-INT ratio. Williams then followed HC Lincoln Riley to USC and turned in a Heisman-winning 2022 season on the back of 4,537 passing yards and 42 TDs. His raw numbers took a step back this past year (losing WR Jordan Addison hurt), but Williams continued to flash a tantalizing skill set. He has the arm to make every throw, Mahomes-ian creativity and improvisation skills, and plenty of rushing ability. Williams will probably need to stay on script a bit more as a pro and clean up his ball security (33 career fumbles). But he has the potential to put up huge passing numbers while also adding fantasy value with his legs. Chicago supplies Williams with an excellent environment for year-one production – especially after the addition of Keenan Allen. The Bears have also built up a solid O-line in recent years. In 2023, they finished fifth in ESPN’s pass-block win rate. There’s top-five upside here long-term, but Williams sits just 21st in our redraft QB rankings, largely because of the position’s depth.
The Chargers are trading WR Keenan Allen to the Bears for a fourth-round pick. That low price clearly comes because of Allen's contract. He carries a $34.7 million cap number, according to Over The Cap. Of course, we don't care about that for fantasy. Allen remained highly productive last season, finishing third among WRs in PPR points per game -- before missing the final four contests. He'll compete with D.J. Moore for the target lead in Chicago, where we're all awaiting confirmation that Caleb Williams will take over at QB. Whoever pilots the Bears offense will have a nice crew of pass-catchers, including new RB D'Andre Swift. Allen's ceiling comes down with the target competition and offense that's almost certain to be less pass-leaning than the Chargers of the past few years. Moore also takes hits to both his floor and ceiling. L.A., meanwhile, has to be a strong candidate to draft a WR fifth overall after dumping both Allen and Mike Williams. Josh Palmer is the top incumbent and looks like a better bet to seize opportunity than Quentin Johnston, who stunk as a 2023 rookie. We'll see how the situation sorts out, but losing Allen obviously hurts QB Justin Herbert. And it further fuels the expectation that the offense will lean much more toward the run under HC Jim Harbaugh and OC Greg Roman. That obviously hurts Herbert's 2024 fantasy outlook. We still believe in the QB's talent, though. So it might be a good time to check Herbert's trade price in dynasty. The whole market has already been down on him this offseason. Check our dynasty rankings to see how these moves affect the players involved.
The Bears are signing TE Gerald Everett to a two-year, $12 million deal, ESPN's Adam Schefter reports. Everett is reuniting with OC Shane Waldron, who was the OC for Everett's final season with Seattle in 2021. Everett tallied a 48-478-4 line in 15 games that year, ranking 20th among TEs in PPR points per game. He turned in TE13 and TE23 finishes with the Chargers the past two years. Everett figures to slot in behind TE Cole Kmet in Chicago and is unlikely to be a reliable weekly fantasy play. But his arrival dings Kmet's 2024 fantasy outlook.
The Bears have agreed to a three-year deal with RB D'Andre Swift, according to multiple reports. Chicago will pay Swift $24 million over that span, with $15.3 million of that guaranteed. That should position Swift as the backfield leader for at least the next two seasons -- assuming he stays healthy, of course. Swift opened his lone Philly season barely playing behind Kenneth Gainwell but then exploded when Gainwell missed Week 2. Swift worked as the lead back the rest of the way, averaging a career-high 41.3 carries per game but a career-low 2.4 receptions per contest. He should immediately step ahead of Bears incumbents Khalil Herbert and Roschon Johnson as both a runner and receiver. If the QB shift to Caleb Williams comes to fruition, then Swift would gain target upside over what Philly presented (or what Justin Fields would present). Swift has been a solid-to-good value in early best ball drafting. Expect his ADP to rise now that he has found starter money on the market. Swift's RB31 position in Underdog Fantasy to date gives him plenty of room to move up the board and still be worth targeting. Check our RB rankings to see where he lands.
The Bears have agreed to a two-year, $15 million deal with S Kevin Byard, according to NFL Network's Ian Rapoport. That positions Byard to take over the starting spot vacated when the team released S Eddie Jackson in February. Byard, of course, spent the second half of 2023 in Philly after a trade from Tennessee. But the Eagles released him this offseason. Byard still finished among the top 15 fantasy DBs, his seventh straight year among the top 24. Byard should remain a solid bet to remain in that range heading into his age-31 campaign.
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