NEWSLETTER
Finding cornerback help has been a bugaboo for the Bears the last few offseasons.
And that search continues as Chicago’s football team prepares for its third practice with pads of the summer. ESPN’s Field Yates reports the Bears “tried out a group of players” on Thursday, but only one stood out enough to get a name-check — cornerback Vernon Hargreaves.
No, Yates didn’t expand with any names beyond Hargreaves. But that has me curious to know who else was checking in at Halas Hall. Then again, unless the collection of other players working out had résumé bullet points that include two first-team All-American nods, recognition as a three-time first-team All-SEC corner, or being a first-round pick in 2016, I can understand why. This highlight reel is juicy (to say the least).
Unfortunately, Hargreaves’ pro highlight has been limited as he hasn’t lived up to the billing that comes with getting chosen as the 11th overall pick. That’s why he is making the rounds on the tryout circuit as he enters his age 27 season. Hargreaves has 69 games (58 starts) of experience with the Bucs (2016-19), Texans (2019-21), and Bengals (2021). And if he makes it onto the Bears, this will mark his third team in two years. That might be a yellow flag for some. I suppose rightfully so. Good cornerbacks don’t bounce around often. But the Bears are in a place where they should be looking in all corners (no pun intended!) for gems. Particularly at a position of need — and especially with Thomas Graham Jr.’s hamstring injury keeping him out of practice.
We’ll see if the Bears bring Hargreaves in for a longer look. Starting tomorrow, the team has just six training camp practices and nine days before its preseason opener against the Chiefs. In other words, they should probably get to working out cornerbacks before the need becomes too problematic.
UPDATE 1 — NFL reporter Aaron Wilson shares the other names of players trying out for the Bears along with Hargreaves:
What a group. Let’s go through them alphabetically:
