NEWSLETTER
One of my favorite callback moments I have as a fan of The Simpsons is in the “Bart’s Girlfriend” episode (S6, E7 if you’re curious), the Sunday school teacher makes a reference to the prodigal son returning as Bart comes back to the class in an attempt to impress Rev. Lovejoy’s daughter. This leaves students in the class asking what the word prodigal means. It still makes me laugh out loud every time I see it — or every time I hear the word prodigal.
I offer that up as an opener to this post because the prodigal son of the 2023 Chicago Bears football season is back with the team. Albeit in a different capacity than when we last saw him.
The Bears announced offensive lineman Doug Kramer has re-signed with the team and is joining its practice squad. In a corresponding move, fellow offensive lineman Matt Farniok has been released.
Kramer, 25, was a sixth-round pick (207th overall) by the Bears in the 2022 NFL Draft. Here’s what we had to say about his selection back in the spring of 2022:
Kramer closed out his senior season at Illinois with a bang. The list of accolades is legit. Picking up Academic All-Big Ten honors, an All-Big Ten second team nod (coaches, Phil Steele), and snagging an All-Big Ten honorable mention (media) as a senior is good stuff. As was playing to the third-best true pass-blocking grade among Power-5 centers from 2018-19, per PFF’s grading. The run-blocking has been good, too. PFF had Kramer down for 14 “big-time run-blocks” in 2019, which were the most for a power-conference center since the site has been tracking such a metric.
OK, so Kramer has just one game (2 offensive snaps) under his belt in his brief pro career. And he’s been cut by two teams this year. Still, I’ve been curious to see him get an extended look from this team. Considering the Bears’ issues with centers and their snaps, I’m at a point where I’m asking what’s the worst that can happen? as I pitch Kramer as a potential stop-gap possibility for this season. I didn’t think we’d get that when Kramer was waived (and claimed by the Cardinals) earlier this month. But, hey, all is well that ends well — right?
Bears Practice Squad
This is what the Bears practice squad looks like after today’s transaction action:
It is nice to have Doug Kramer back in the fold. Don’t get me wrong. I don’t want to overstate the return of a sixth-round pick with just two snaps of professional playing experience. But I’m of the mindset of “the more, the merrier” when it comes to offensive linemen. And especially when it comes to the center position the Bears have failed to fill in recent years.
