NEWSLETTER
Earlier, Bears Head Coach Matt Nagy confirmed the worst regarding Roquan Smith’s injury and announced the linebacker was going to injured reserve
The Bears have since made it official, shuffling the roster with a few moves in addition to Smith going on IR.
Here we go:
#Bears roster moves:
We have placed LB Roquan Smith on Injured Reserve (IR) and have signed LB Devante Bond to the active roster. We also have released practice squad LB Dewayne Hendrix and have signed DB Xavier Crawford to the practice squad.— Chicago Bears (@BearsPR) December 9, 2019
Chicago has signed linebacker Devante Bond to the active roster, taking Smith’s spot among the 53-man roster. Bond was a sixth-round pick of the Buccaneers back in 2016, but has played sparingly since his arrival in the league. Back in October, he was handed a four-week suspension for violating the league’s performance-enhancing drug policy and has since been reinstated.
Additionally, the team released linebacker Dewayne Hendrix from the practice squad. Plenty of linebacker movement, but there is one more piece of roster news.
The Bears also signed cornerback Xavier Crawford to the practice squad. Crawford takes Hendrix’s place on that unit. If Crawford’s name rings a bell, it’s probably because you’re a big Central Michigan football fan — or you remember that the Bears had a one-on-one with him during the pre-draft process. Crawford was an all-conference performer who ran the 40-yard-dash in 4.36 seconds. At minimum, it’s always nice to add secondary depth when possible.
Part of me wondered if the Bears would slide Smith onto IR and fill his roster spot with defensive lineman Akiem Hicks, who could return as early as this week. And while Hicks could still return Sunday if he is activated by Saturday’s deadline, the Bears have decided to fill the roster spot Smith vacated with a different inside linebacker option.
