It looks like someone made the most of their veteran tryout during the Bears’ rookie minicamp.
NFL Network insider Tom Pelisseor reports Chicago is adding Stephen Carlson to its tight ends room:
Carlson, 26, was a Cleveland Browns UDFA signing after the 2019 NFL Draft. The Princeton product has 25 games (7 starts) under his belt, but hasn’t appeared in a game since Cleveland’s playoff loss in Kansas City in January 2021. Injuries have kept Carlson off the field, with a torn ACL in 2022 being the most recent setback in his career. I suppose Carlson looked good (and healthy) enough for the Bears to extend a contract offer beyond this weekend’s tryout. To that, I say good for him. We love a bounce-back story around here and look forward to following it.
As for the rest of the tight ends room, things appear to be settling into place. Cole Kmet is at the top of the depth chart. Free agent addition Robert Tonyan is right behind him. Beyond those two, there figures to be a battle between Chase Allen, Damien Caffrey, and Jake Tonges. And now, we’re adding Carlson to the list.