Surprise Bears Playmaker Clinches Roster Spot With Stellar Preseason Finale

Heading into training camp last month, Chicago Bears fans wondered if former third-round pick Velus Jones Jr. would make the 53-man roster, given all the talent at wide receiver. Chicago overhauled their wide receiver room in the offseason, trading for Keenan Allen and taking Rome Odunze in the first round of the 2024 NFL Draft.

With Allen, Odunze, and D.J. Moore as the Bears’ top-three receivers, it pushed Jones down the depth chart and potentially off the roster.

However, the former University of Tennessee standout tried out a new position during training camp as he worked out with the running backs. Bears head coach Matt Eberflus told reporters before Chicago’s preseason game against Buffalo that Jones would definitely get some carries and was open to the move.

The former third-round pick looked good in his first extended look at running back against the Bills, rushing for 34 yards and a touchdown on six carries. Jones didn’t have the same success on the ground in the Bears’ next preseason game against the Cincinnati Bengals (six carries for 13 yards).

However, the 27-year-old put together an outstanding performance on the ground in Thursday night’s preseason game against the Kansas City Chiefs. Jones had 111 rushing yards and a TD on 13 carries.

After Thursday’s preseason finale, Eberflus was about Jones’ non-participation on kick returns and he replied with an interesting answer that bodes well for the former third-round pick.

"We've seen enough from him,” Eberflus said via Brendan Sugrue. “He's done that several times for us. We wanted to give some other guys some different looks back there."

Based on Eberflus’ answer and what Jones has done in the preseason, he’s likely locked up a spot on the Bears’ 53-man roster.

Many fans thought coming into the summer the only way Jones would make the team was through special teams. But to his credit, Jones took on the challenge of trying out a new position and shined with the limited opportunities allotted to him.

The former third-round pick will hope to capitalize on this momentum when the regular season kicks off in a couple of weeks.

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