RB Tarik Cohen Appears To Suffer Leg Injury
7:24pm: An MRI has confirmed that Cohen ruptured his Achilles, per ESPN’s Adam Schefter (on Twitter).
5:54pm: After missing most of the 2020 NFL season with a torn ACL and MCL, as well as a tibial plateau fracture, and missing the entire 2021 season recovering from those injuries, former-Bears running back Tarik Cohen may be looking at another unfortunate setback. According to Jonathan Jones of CBS Sports, Cohen looks “to have suffered a serious lower-leg injury during a workout (that he was) streaming on IG Live.” 
Cohen was a fourth-round draft pick for Chicago in 2017 after an outstanding career at the HBCU North Carolina A&T. Splitting carries with now-Eagles running back Jordan Howard as rookie, Cohen worked mostly as the team’s receiving back. In his sophomore year in Chicago, Cohen blossomed in his assigned role breaking out for 725 receiving yards and 5 receiving touchdowns, in addition to his 444 yards rushing and 3 rushing touchdowns. He also threw two touchdown passes in his first two years with the Bears.
In his third year, Cohen was only able to see three games of action before suffering his major knee injuries. They sidelined him for the rest of the year and he sat out the following year, as well, in an effort to work back to full health.
Cohen was released by the Bears two months ago and was working towards finally making a comeback from his injuries as a free agent. Unfortunately, if the reports are accurate, it appears that Cohen’s comeback bid may have to wait a bit longer.
NFL Draft Pick Signings: 5/17/22
Here are the latest draft pick signings around the NFL:
Chicago Bears
- WR Velus Jones (third round, Tennessee)
Dallas Cowboys
- DE Sam Williams (second round, Ole Miss)
- WR Jalen Tolbert (third round, South Alabama)
Detroit Lions
- S Kerby Joseph (third round, Illinois)
Indianapolis Colts
- WR Alec Pierce (second round, Cincinnati)
Minor NFL Transactions: 5/17/22
Here are today’s minor moves:
Arizona Cardinals
- Claimed: OLB Jessie Lemonier (from Lions)
- Released: DL LaRon Stokes
Buffalo Bills
- Signed: DL Daniel Joseph
Chicago Bears
- Signed: OT Shon Coleman
- Waived: P Ryan Winslow
Cleveland Browns
- Claimed: S Luther Kirk (from Falcons), CB Reggie Robinson II (from Texans)
Denver Broncos
- Signed: OG Zack Johnson
- Waived: DB Cortez Davis
Green Bay Packers
- Waived: OL Jahmir Johnson
Houston Texans
- Placed on IR: S Kolby Harvell-Peel
Los Angeles Chargers
- Claimed: OG Zack Bailey (from Commanders)
Los Angeles Rams
- Waived: TE Roger Carter, CB T.J. Carter, LB Andrzej Hughes-Murray, S Daniel Isom, WR Lance McCutcheon
New Orleans Saints
- Waived: OG Eric Wilson
Philadelphia Eagles
- Claimed: WR Josh Hammond (from Jaguars)
Pittsburgh Steelers
- Placed on IR: CB Bryce Watts
San Francisco 49ers
- Signed: TE Troy Fumagalli
- Waived: TE Garrett Walston
NFL Draft Pick Signings: 5/16/22
Several more mid- and late-round picks agreed to terms on their four-year rookie contracts Friday. Here are the latest agreements:
Chicago Bears
- T Zachary Thomas (sixth round, San Diego State)
Indianapolis Colts
- S Rodney Thomas II (seventh round, Yale)
New England Patriots
- OL Chasen Hines (sixth round, LSU)
- OL Andrew Stueber (seventh round, Michigan)
Giants Hire Ex-Bears Scout
- Giants GM Joe Schoen continues to form his front office, and after adding two-time coworker Dennis Hickey to the mix, the first-year GM is hiring another former colleague. Chris Rossetti, who was with the Dolphins during Schoen’s mid-2010s tenure, will become the Giants’ new director of pro scouting, Jordan Raanan of ESPN.com tweets. Rossetti was most recently the Dolphins’ assistant pro scouting director. Big Blue is also hiring Mike Derice as a national scout, InsideTheLeague.com’s Neil Stratton tweets. Derice, a Brooklyn native, worked as a Colts area scout for the past 10 years. The Giants are adding an area scout as well, announcing the hire of Scott Hamel, who spent the past seven years with the Bears under Ryan Pace.
Minor NFL Transactions: 5/13/22
Today’s minor moves around the league:
Arizona Cardinals
- Signed: DL Kingsley Keke
- Placed on Non-Football Injury List: TE Alex Ellis
Atlanta Falcons
- Released: CB Kendall Sheffield, TE Ryan Becker
Chicago Bears
- Waived: TE Jesper Horsted
Cincinnati Bengals
- Signed: CB Abu Daramy-Swaray
Cleveland Browns
- Waived: RB Tre Harbison (non-football injury)
Dallas Cowboys
- Released: K Chris Naggar
Jacksonville Jaguars
- Re-Signed: OL Jared Hocker
- Released: OL Denzel Okafor
New England Patriots
- Waived: OL Liam Shanahan (failed physical designation)
New Orleans Saints
- Waived: TE Dylan Soehner (failed physical designation), TE Ethan Wolf
Pittsburgh Steelers
- Signed: OL Trenton Scott
- Released: OL Malcolm Pridgeon
San Francisco 49ers
- Waived: WR Connor Wedington
Seattle Seahawks
- Signed: WR Deontez Alexander, WR Kevin Kassis
- Waived: WR Matt Cole, WR Jake Herslow, WR John Mitchell, WR Demetris Robertson
Washington Commanders
- Waived: S De’Vante Cross
Minor NFL Transactions: 5/12/22
Today’s minor NFL transactions:
Arizona Cardinals
- Signed: DL Kingsley Keke
Carolina Panthers
- Released: OT Aaron Monteiro, WR Aaron Parker
Chicago Bears
- Released: WR Cyrus Holder, WR Henry Litwin
Detroit Lions
- Waived: S Jalen Elliott, WR Javon McKinley
Las Vegas Raiders
- Released: QB Garrett Gilbert
Bears Sign WR Dante Pettis
The Bears have made another move at wide receiver. Chicago is signing wideout Dante Pettis, the receiver announced on Twitter.
[RELATED: Bears To Sign WR Tajae Sharpe]
Pettis was a second-round pick by the 49ers in 2018, and he had a solid showing during his rookie campaign, hauling in 27 receptions for 467 yards and five touchdowns. Since then, the receiver has collected only 15 receptions for 185 yards and three touchdowns during stints with the 49ers and Giants.
After getting waived by San Francisco during the 2020 campaign, Pettis landed in New York. In one-plus seasons with the Giants, Pettis averaged 32.6 yards per game in five contests while adding a pair of touchdowns. The receiver’s 2021 season ended on injured reserve after he suffered a shoulder injury.
The Bears have been busy reshaping their receivers depth chart this offseason. While they let Allen Robinson walk in free agency, they’ve added Byron Pringle, Equanimeous St. Brown, David Moore, Tajae Sharpe (who they signed earlier today), and now Pettis via free agency. The team also drafted Tennessee wideout Velus Jones in the third round of the draft, meaning the majority (if not all) of the receivers depth behind Darnell Mooney will consist of newcomers.
Minor NFL Transactions: 5/11/22
We’ll keep track of today’s minor moves here:
Baltimore Ravens
- Waived: DT Xavier Kelly
Carolina Panthers
- Waived: LB Azur Kamara
Chicago Bears
- Claimed (from Giants): TE Rysen John
- Waived/failed physical: TE Jesper Horsted
Detroit Lions
- Waived: QB Steven Montez
Green Bay Packers
- Claimed (from Colts): TE Eli Wolf
- Waived: WR Chris Blair
Jacksonville Jaguars
- Waived: OL Jared Hocker
New England Patriots
- Claimed (from Lions): TE Matthew Sokol
New Orleans Saints
- Waived: RB Josh Adams, DT Braxton Hoyett
Pittsburgh Steelers
- Reverted to IR: CB Isaiah Johnson
Bears To Sign WR Tajae Sharpe
The Bears’ new regime has been busy at receiver this offseason, adding a host of veteran auxiliary options to what promises to be a Darnell Mooney-centered position group. They made another move Wednesday.
Tajae Sharpe agreed to terms on a one-year Chicago deal, Ian Rapoport of NFL.com tweets. The Bears will be Sharpe’s fifth team, and he will rejoin ex-Chiefs teammate Byron Pringle on Chicago’s new-look receiver depth chart. The Bears hiring ex-Chiefs front office staffer Ryan Poles as GM likely provided a clearer route for Sharpe to Chicago.
A former Titans fifth-round pick back in 2016, Sharpe spent last season with the Falcons. The 6-foot-2 receiver caught 25 passes for 230 yards with Atlanta, which saw its receiving corps take a major hit from Calvin Ridley‘s midseason exit. Sharpe, 27, has bounced around since his Titans rookie contract expired in 2020. The Vikings and Chiefs brought him in that year, though he did not catch a pass for Minnesota and did not suit up for a game with Kansas City. The Chiefs stashed Sharpe on their practice squad to close out the 2020 season and re-signed him last year, but they cut bait shortly after the draft.
Allen Robinson left the Bears as a free agent, joining the Rams, and Poles has gone with a quantity-driven approach around Mooney this offseason. Pringle, Equanimeous St. Brown and David Moore joined the Bears as free agents. The team also used a third-round pick on Tennessee wideout Velus Jones.