3 Players the Bears Will Regret Leaving Off the 53-Man Roster
2. Tommy Sweeney, tight end
The Bears set themselves up nicely this offseason at the offensive skill positions, especially at the running back position. We saw them go after free agent D'Andre Swift to be the new leader of the room, and he'll pair nicely with the likes of Khalil Herbert, Roschon Johnson, and newly transitioned offensive weapon Velus Jones Jr.
The Bears are also keeping special teams ace Travis Homer around at the running back position, and the presence of players like Homer and Jones on this roster left little room for additional tight end help like Tommy Sweeney.
Sweeney is a veteran at this point, so it's not like the Bears are cutting a young player with high draft status, but he brings a lot to the table and we saw that on display throughout the course of the preseason.
He's a good blocker and adds value as an underrated option in the passing game, and we saw Bears backup quarterbacks connect with him on a number of nice plays and inside the red zone as well. There were plenty of Chicago Bears fans calling for Sweeney over Marcedes Lewis throughout the preseason after seeing some of his work in the running game, too.
Let's get into some of the #Bears running plays today. One that really stuck out to me.
— Coach Usayd Koshul (@usaydkoshul) August 11, 2024
Through two preseason games, tight end Tommy Sweeney has really emerged as a player who can run block.
On Velus Jones' touchdown to break the game wide open in the third quarter, Sweeney… pic.twitter.com/tAzm1YBymb
Part of the issue here is the fact that Sweeney playing well in the preseason is not a new thing. The tough part for him has been transitioning that into regular season success. He's one of those players who is almost too good for the preseason and just not quite there when it comes to regular season readiness.
But that could change this year, and the Bears might let him get away to another team and regret it later on this season.