Ahead of their Week 17 primetime matchup against the San Francisco 49ers, the Chicago Bears waived 26-year-old defensive lineman Jonathan Ford.
Ford, who was claimed off waivers by the Bears last December, appeared in four games in 2024 and eight games this season. With Chicago subjecting Ford to waivers, it now allows the other 31 NFL teams to put in a claim for him.
Thankfully, Ford didn’t have to wait long for his next playing opportunity, as he’s staying in the NFC North. On Monday, Jason B. Hirschhorn of The Leap reported that Ford was claimed off waivers by the Green Bay Packers.
The Packers are quite familiar with Ford as they took him in the seventh round of the 2022 NFL Draft. Ford didn’t appear in any games with the Packers as he spent his first two years in Green Bay on the practice squad and injured reserve. That said, Ford has a chance to play quickly, as the Packers’ DT depth is hanging by a thread and desperately needs healthy bodies.
And if that’s the case, there’s a chance Bears fans might see Ford again, especially if the NFC playoff picture holds to form.
Ex-Bear Jonathan Ford Could Face Chicago in Wild Card Round of NFL Playoffs
As things currently stand, Green Bay will likely be the seventh seed when the playoffs begin next week. Their opponent could be the Chicago Bears or Philadelphia Eagles, who are both battling for the No. 2 seed.
The Bears currently own the No. 2 seed, thanks to a H2H win over the Eagles on Black Friday. According to ESPN’s Courtney Cronin, Chicago head coach Ben Johnson said, “We’re playing to win this week.” The Bears will wrap up the regular season at home against the Detroit Lions.
If the Bears win and the Eagles lose on Sunday, it officially sets the stage for an unprecedented third matchup against the Packers. The Bears can also get the second seed if they win, along with the Eagles, as they own the H2H tiebreaker.
If these two NFC North foes end up squaring off against each other, we shouldn’t expect Ford to play a big role. This season with the Bears, he only played 111 total snaps (96 on defense and 15 on special teams) and had four combined tackles.
However, given the lack of depth at defensive tackle for Green Bay, Ford could find his way on the field in a rotational role. And if you're Ben Johnson, the game plan should be attack the middle of the Packers' defense by running the football with your two RBs in D'Andre Swift and Kyle Monangai.