The Chicago Bears have wrapped up the preseason and are now looking toward their season opener against the Minnesota Vikings. While Tyson Bagent’s game-winning touchdown sent Chicago into the regular season on a high note, head coach Ben Johnson is still seething after his offense couldn’t build on its dominant performance against the Buffalo Bills.
It creates an interesting dynamic as the Bears look to cut their roster down from 90 players to 53 in the coming days, but it’s a process that every team is going through ahead of Tuesday’s deadline. It meant bad news for a former Bears quarterback that’s now without a job after a big NFL trade on Sunday morning.
The #Vikings are releasing QB Brett Rypien, per source.
— Tom Pelissero (@TomPelissero) August 24, 2025
The respected veteran should have interest elsewhere, while Minnesota moves forward with a remodeled QB room of J.J. McCarthy, Carson Wentz and undrafted rookie Max Brosmer. pic.twitter.com/Xpinc2ENCK
Vikings Release Former Bears QB Brett Rypien After Signing Carson Wentz
The Vikings were busy sorting out their quarterback room on Sunday morning and former Bears quarterback Brett Rypien got caught in the crossfire. According to NFL Network’s Tom Pelissero, Minnesota has released Rypien moments after a flurry of moves including a big trade that sent Sam Howell to the Philadelphia Eagles and saw Carson Wentz sign with the Vikings to take his place.
Rypien has only appeared in 10 career games with four starts, completing 58.3% of his passes for 950 yards, four touchdowns and nine interceptions. An undrafted free agent out of Boise State, he hung with the Denver Broncos in the first three years of his career before spending the 2023 season with the Los Angeles Rams, Seattle Seahawks and New York Jets.
Although he signed a one-year deal with the Bears before the 2024 season, he failed to make the team out of training camp and signed with the Vikings. He spent the entire year on the practice squad and was competing to become the No. 3 quarterback during training camp. But after he and Howell were passed on the depth chart, the Vikings chose to go with J.J. McCarthy, Wentz and Brosmer and UDFA Max Brosmer in their quarterback room.
The next question for Rypien is where he lands next. While he hasn’t had success on the field, he’s been able to hang around thanks to his smarts. It may be too early for Rypien to lean into a coaching career, but it’s possible he could latch on with another team once roster cuts are complete later this week.