Chicago Bears: Five players the Bears will likely cut before the season

Jerrell Freeman

When Freeman played for the Chicago Bears, he was excellent. In fact, during his first year with the team in 2016, he was a top-five inside linebacker in the NFL.

The problem was…well, all the other stuff.

Getting banned for four games in 2016 due to a performance-enhancing drug suspension.

Tearing his pectoral muscle in the first game of the season and never playing again in 2017 (though I’m blaming that on the training staff more than anything).

Then, receiving another suspension for PEDs—this one’s for 10 games—that he couldn’t even serve because he was hurt. That means that ban carries over into this coming season, making him ineligible to even take the field until Week 11. That’s not good.

With Matt Nagy rebuilding the Chicago Bears in his image, don’t expect to see Freeman here when the season starts.

At age 31, his health will start to decline one way or another. And aside from that, he clearly has some issues that need attending to. Hopefully, whether or not he plays football again, he can find his way to recovery and a healthy lifestyle again.

Unfortunately, despite his strong play during his tenure here, he’ll likely have to find those things somewhere else.