Tag: Trevon Wesco

Bears 2022 TE review: Cole Kmet has breakout season

Our next Bears position review of 2022 looks at the tight ends, with Cole Kmet breaking out in a big way during his third season.

The Chicago Bears wrapped the 2022 season with a 3-14 record, which culminated in a 10-game losing streak. But there’s still reasons to be optimistic about the future, including a boatload of salary cap space, the first overall pick in the 2023 NFL draft and the emergence of quarterback Justin Fields.

Here at Bears Wire, we’re going position by position through the 2022 Bears and grading every player. Rounding out the skill positions on offense is tight end, where Cole Kmet stood out in a big way.

Vikings vs. Bears injury report: Josh Metellus upgraded

Minimal improvement describes the Vikings’ injury report

Thankfully, the Minnesota Vikings are relatively healthy but things still aren’t perfect and the injury report reflects that.

Thursday’s injury report was much of the same but did have some improvement.

  • Safety Josh Metellus was upgraded to a full participant in practice after being limited on Wednesday.
  • Linebacker Brian Asamoah was limited once again due to a knee injury
  • Center Garrett Bradbury did not practice again with his back. He hasn’t practiced since he was involved in a minor car accident after the game against Indianapolis Colts.
  • Defensive end James Lynch is still out with a shoulder injury. It was initially reported that he would be out for the rest of the regular season.

For the Bears, cornerback Kyler Gordon appeared on the injury report with a groin injury. He was limited after not being on the report on Wednesday. Tight end Trevon Wesco was upgraded to full with an ankle injury.

Friday’s report will clear a lot of things up.

Analyzing the Bears’ new waiver wire additions

Our Bears Wire staff is sharing their thoughts on the 7 new waiver wire additions to the roster.

The Chicago Bears added some new faces to the roster after claiming seven players off waivers last week in offensive lineman Alex Leatherwood, defensive tackle Armon Watts, receiver Ihmir Smith-Marsette, linebacker Sterling Weatherford, defensive end Kingsley Jonathan, cornerback Josh Blackwell and tight end Trevon Wesco.

General manager Ryan Poles landed some talented players with plenty of potential as he continues to build his roster.

Our Bears Wire staff is sharing their thoughts on the seven new waiver wire additions to the roster.

Grading the Bears’ seven waiver wire signings

The Bears claimed seven players off waivers this week, including Alex Leatherwood and Armon Watts. We grade the new additions:

The Chicago Bears made several roster moves after setting their initial 53-man roster. Following roster cuts, new general manager Ryan Poles and head coach Matt Eberflus continued to put their stamp on the roster by claiming seven players off of waivers — the most in the NFL.

Poles and Eberflus inherited a team with limited draft capital and money to spend on free agents. To make matters worse, they changed the offensive and defensive scheme, leaving them with a roster of players who didn’t fit the future vision.

The seven waiver claims this week are additions of players who the front office believes either fit the culture, the scheme or are value picks with upside.

Below we grade the seven new roster additions.

Trevon Wesco was most-claimed player on waiver wire

Teams really wanted the former Jets H-back

When it comes to the waiver wire after teams set their initial 53-man rosters, some players become more popular than others when being claimed. But the player that was the most popular on the waiver wire may come as a surprise to some of you.

Former Jets TE Trevon Wesco, who was claimed by the Chicago Bears, was the surprise popular pick among teams, as a league-high four teams all put in a claim on Wesco, as noted by ESPN’s Field Yates.

Along with the Bears, the Browns, Colts and Bengals all put in a claim on the former Jet. Teams may still believe they can use his versatility in some fashion. The Bears had the highest waiver priority, so they were awarded Wesco.

Bengals attempted to claim TE Trevon Wesco on waiver wire

The Bengals attempted to add another player on the waiver wire.

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The Cincinnati Bengals added three players on waivers after making the 53-man roster, gaining a tight end and two linemen in the process.

They apparently were one of the many teams interested in tight end Trevon Wesco, too.

According to ESPN’s Field Yates, the Bengals were one of four teams to put in a claim on Wesco. A 26-year-old former fourth-round pick, Wesco was known for his blocking and ultimately ended up going to the Chicago Bears, who had priority over the other claiming teams.

Still, the interest speaks to just how serious the Bengals are about upgrading the depth at tight end as Drew Sample and Mitchell Wilcox battle injuries.

That would explain the waiver claim on Wednesday, plus the reported interest in still signing former first-round pick O.J. Howard.

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Browns placed claim on TE Trevon Wesco, Bears had higher priority

The waiver claim seems to indicate the type of tight end Berry and Stefanski might be interested in as third on the depth chart:

The Cleveland Browns claimed QB Kellen Mond on Wednesday (more on that here) as their only waiver acquisition. That doesn’t mean the team only placed one claim. It is possible GM Andrew Berry was quite aggressive in claiming players but lost out due to waiver wire priority.

With just the thirteenth priority, it is possible that the Browns missed out on a wide variety of players that were claimed ahead of them. The Jacksonville Jaguars and Chicago Bears alone claimed 11 players. Unfortunately, we will never know all of the players Berry tried to claim.

Late last night we did learn about one of them:

Based on claiming order, Cleveland would have won the claim on Wesco over Indianapolis and Cincinnati. The Bengals ended up claiming TE Devin Asiasi which means Berry did not place a claim on the former New England Patriot.

Wesco is considered a versatile player who can play fullback, h-back or tight end. A fourth-round selection of the New York Jets in 2019, Wesco is not much of a pass catcher, just six receptions in 40 career games, but has been a solid blocker.

Placing a claim on Wesco but not Asiasi, more of a pass catcher, would indicate that Berry is not focused on pass-catching talent if he adds a third tight end.

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Highlights of every new Bears roster addition

The Bears claimed six players off waivers, including Alex Leatherwood and Armon Watts. Check out highlights of each player:

The Chicago Bears made several roster moves after setting their initial 53-man roster. They claimed six players off of waivers, which was the most in the league.

That included former first-round offensive lineman Alex Leatherwood, who lasted just one year in Las Vegas before being a surprise cut. Another surprise cut was former Vikings defensive tackle Armon Watts, who comes to Chicago as an upgrade at the nose tackle position.

Chicago also claimed comeback Josh Blackwell, defensive end Kingsley Jonathan, linebacker Sterling Weatherford and tight end Trevon Wesco.

In corresponding roster moves, Chicago waived rookie offensive lineman Zachary Thomas, defensive tackle Khyiris Tonga, linebacker Caleb Johnson and cornerback Duke Shelley. They also terminated the contract of linebacker Joe Thomas and placed receiver Tajae Sharpe on injured reserve.

The Bears have welcomed six new members to the roster. Here are highlights of each of them:

Jets waive TE Trevon Wesco

Another tight end let go by the Jets

One more Mike Maccagnan draft pick has been let go by Joe Douglas and the Jets. The Jets have waived TE Trevon Wesco.

As noted by ESPN’s Rich Cimini, the only remaining draft picks from 2015-2019 left on the Jets are DTs Quinnen Williams and Nathan Shepherd.

With the Jets also releasing Kenny Yeboah, the Jets, for now, look like they will roll with four tight ends: C.J. Uzomah, Tyler Conklin, Lawrence Cager and rookie Jeremy Ruckert.

Wesco was a tight end/fullback hybrid out of West Virginia, drafted in the fourth round in 2019. He played in 40 games for the Jets over three seasons, catching six passes for 87 yards.