Tag: Thomas Graham Jr.

Bears 2021 CB review: Few bright spots among weakest position group

We’re taking a look at how the Bears cornerbacks fared in 2021.

The Chicago Bears wrapped another disappointing season that resulted in the firings of general manager Ryan Pace and head coach Matt Nagy. With the offseason in full swing, it provides an opportunity for the new regime in GM Ryan Poles and head coach Matt Eberflus to look back at went right, what went wrong and how to improve in 2022.

Here at Bears Wire, we’re going position by position through the 2021 Bears and grading every player. Next up is cornerback, arguably the weakest group on defense this season. Although there were a couple of standouts.

PREVIOUS POSITION REVIEWS: QB, RB, WR, TE, OL, DL, OLB, ILB

Bear Necessities: Thomas Graham Jr. accomplished something impressive in just 2 games

Bears rookie CB Thomas Graham Jr. has made quite an impression in his first two games of NFL action this season.

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Bears sixth-round rookie cornerback Thomas Graham Jr. has spent the majority of the season on the practice squad. But he’s made quite an impression in his first two games of NFL action this season.

Graham has accomplished something in just two games that others haven’t accomplished all season. Graham has four pass breakups this season, which is tied with cornerback Kindle Vildor for the second most. Cornerback Jaylon Johnson leads the Bears with nine.

But the most impressive thing is Graham accomplished the feat — and cut Johnson’s nine pass breakup lead in half — in just two games.

Graham has also allowed catches on just 37.5 percent of passes thrown his way, where his only blemish is getting smoked by Seahawks wide receiver DK Metcalf, where Graham had no help.

Heading into the final two games of the 2021 season, Graham has the opportunity to make a case for him to see starting reps opposite Johnson next season.

And, who knows, Chicago might’ve just found their cornerbacks of the future.

6 Bears who deserve more playing time in final 3 games of 2021

The Bears’ season is all but over, which means it’s time to get a better look at what these players can contribute.

We’re winding down on what’s been a tumultuous season for the Chicago Bears, where there are just three games left before the Bears head into an offseason of change.

While Chicago has officially been eliminated from playoff contention, there’s still plenty to watch in these final games. Namely, some of the young players who have the potential to become impact players down the road for the Bears. Now that there’s nothing left to play for, it’s time for some players who haven’t gotten a lot of opportunities this season to get some.

Here’s a look at six Bears who’ve earned more playing time in the final weeks of the season:

Bears announce roster moves heading into Week 16

The Bears have signed Thomas Graham Jr. to the active roster, placed Bilal Nichols on COVID reserve and activated 2 players off the list.

The Chicago Bears (4-10) are coming off a frustrating loss to the Minnesota Vikings (7-7) on Monday Night Football, which eliminated Chicago from postseason contention.

Now, their attention shifts to Week 16, where they’ll battle the Seattle Seahawks on Sunday. But before that, the Bears announced some roster moves, including the signing of rookie cornerback Thomas Graham Jr. to the active roster.

Here’s a look at the roster moves the Bears made on Tuesday ahead of Week 16 against the Seahawks, including movement on the COVID-19 front.

Studs and duds from Bears’ prime-time loss to Vikings

Despite the Bears’ disappointing loss to the Vikings, there were some players who stood out in a good way.

It was another prime-time dud for the Chicago Bears this season as they fell to their division rivals the Minnesota Vikings 17-9, dropping to 4-10 on the season. The Bears have now lost all four of their prime-time games this season and clinch their first double-digit loss season since 2017.

Offensively, the Bears were able to move the ball fairly well against the Vikings, but stalled multiple times due to turnovers and failing to convert on fourth downs.

The defense, however, did their part and kept them in the game all night long. They limited the Vikings to under 20 points and under 200 yards, bottling up their running game especially. But costly penalties led to points, putting this game out of reach.

The Bears were without many of their key players and relied on quite a few practice squad guys to fill the void. Did any of them standout as studs? Here are this week’s studs and duds.

Instant analysis of Bears’ frustrating 17-9 loss to Vikings in prime time

It was the same old song for the Bears as self-inflicted mistakes and offensive woes doomed them in a 17-9 loss to the Vikings.

With the Chicago Bears down 14 players, including their entire starting secondary, and two coordinators, everyone was expecting the Minnesota Vikings to roll over the Bears with ease.

While that wasn’t the case — thanks in large part to a dominant defensive effort — there certainly wasn’t anything to celebrate as the Bears lost in frustrating and humiliating fashion 17-9 to the Vikings, falling to 4-10 on the season and officially eliminated them from playoff contention.

It was the same old song for the Bears as self-inflicted mistakes and offensive woes doomed them in a game that they had a chance to win. Chicago committed three turnovers — all fumbles — committed nine penalties and managed just nine points on five possessions inside the red zone. Granted, six of those points came on a final-second touchdown from quarterback Justin Fields to tight end Jesper Horsted.

The fact that Chicago beat themselves wasn’t a shock. It’s what we’ve seen all season. It was that the Bears defense dominated the Vikings without their entire starting secondary. Chicago held Minnesota to 193 total yards, where quarterback Kirk Cousins mustered just 87 passing yards and receiver Justin Jefferson had just 47 receiving yards and an early score.

The Bears defensive front played a huge role in their dominance, which included two-sack outings by defensive tackle Akiem Hicks and outside linebacker Robert Quinn, who was named to the Pro Bowl as a starter.

One of the pleasant surprises in this game was the performance of sixth-round rookie cornerback Thomas Graham Jr., who shined in his NFL debut with seven tackles and three pass breakups.

Oh, and by the way, Graham has been stashed on the practice squad for 14 weeks when he could’ve been on the field alongside Jaylon Johnson. Instead, we’ve been subjected to Kindle Vildor, Artie Burns and Xavier Crawford, just another indictment on this coaching staff.

The Bears offense continues to be a miserable mess, whether that’s their red zone struggles, penalties, turnovers or the fact they mustered just three points until the final second of the game.

Quarterback Justin Fields’ stat line looked good — 26-of-39 for 285 yards and a touchdown for a 96.6 rating — but he had a rough outing against Minnesota,  where ball security remains an issue after he fumbled twice, losing one.

It’s not enough for concern about Fields’ future, especially given the circumstances of this season. But he has three games left this season to try and build on his past performances this season heading into a crucial offseason.

Next up for the Bears is a trip to Seattle to battle an underperforming Seahawks team. Like this game, it’s a winnable one. But it’s hard to believe Chicago can beat Seattle if they continue to beat themselves.

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Bears fans are wondering what the heck took so long for Thomas Graham Jr. to see playing time

Bears fans are wondering why they were forced to watch Kindle Vildor and Xavier Crawford when Thomas Graham Jr. looks like the future.

With the Chicago Bears’ secondary depleted by COVID-19, the team was forced to flex a slew of defensive backs to the active roster for Monday night’s game against the Minnesota Vikings.

Among those is rookie cornerback Thomas Graham Jr., who got the start opposite Kindle Vildor with Jaylon Johnson and Artie Burns sidelined.

Graham, a sixth-round draft selection by Chicago, was a shocking roster cut back in August, although he was re-signed to the practice squad.

Graham made his NFL debut Monday against the Vikings, where he’s gotten off to an impressive start in his first NFL start. Through the middle of the second quarter, Graham had two pass breakups, including one that prevented a Minnesota touchdown, and a beautiful open-field tackle.

Bears fans are left wondering why it took a COVID-19 outbreak for Graham to finally see playing time this season, especially considering guys like Vildor, Burns and Xavier Crawford have not only gotten playing time but made the active roster over Graham.

Grading the Bears’ 2021 NFL draft class with 4 games left

Here are our grades for all seven players selected by the Bears in the 2021 NFL draft heading into the final month of the season.

Following the 2021 NFL draft, Bears general manager Ryan Pace received glowing reviews for his draft selections. That of course had a lot to do with trading up to draft quarterback Justin Fields, but there were a lot of Day 3 picks that had the potential to be contributors.

We’re nearing the end of the regular season, and the Bears have gotten contributions from some, not all, of their 2021 NFL draft class. Here are our grades for all seven players selected by the Bears in the 2021 NFL draft with four games to go.

Bears waive sixth-round rookies WR Dazz Newsome and CB Thomas Graham Jr.

There have been some surprising cuts by the Bears, including sixth-round rookies WR Dazz Newsome and CB Thomas Graham Jr. being waived.

The Chicago Bears are in the midst of final roster cuts, and there have been some difficult decisions so far. But two of those included two rookies from their 2021 draft class.

According to Brad Biggs and Tom Pelissero, the Bears are waiving a pair of sixth-round rookies — wide receiver Dazz Newsome and cornerback Thomas Graham Jr.

Newsome’s cut was the first real surprise cut given the Bears currently have five wide receivers on the roster, including preseason darling Rodney Adams. Newsome was getting a bulk of the punt returns during preseason, so with Newsome gone and Tarik Cohen still sidelined, there’s a question as to who will be returning punts this season.

Graham was competing for a roster spot in a crowded but question-filled cornerback room, so his cut is certainly surprising given no one has really stepped up this summer.

Assuming both clear waivers, Newsome and Graham would be prime candidates for the Bears’ 16-man practice squad, which can begin forming Wednesday at 3 p.m. CT.

Follow along with all of the Bears’ cuts below:

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10 Bears players to watch during Saturday’s preseason finale vs. Titans

Heading into the final week of preseason, there are some roster spots still up for grabs. Here are some Bears we’ll be watching vs. Titans.

The preseason comes to a close this weekend for the Chicago Bears as they travel south to take on the Tennessee Titans. As of now, the game is still scheduled to take place, as the Titans are currently experiencing a COVID-19 outbreak. At least nine individuals have tested positive for the virus, including head coach Mike Vrabel.

Assuming the game proceeds as planned, the Bears have quite a few players worth watching as they prepare for their final big audition to make the 53-man roster. Here are 10 players I’m keeping my eye on this Saturday night.