North Notes: Bears, Packers, Tomlin, Browns
The Bears became the latest team to work out Jamon Brown, with SI.com’s Albert Breer tweeting the guard was in Chicago for an audition. The free agent guard, a Falcons cut last month, has already worked out for the 49ers. Brown was a full-time Rams starter in 2017, but a 2018 suspension derailed his momentum. The Rams waived him shortly after he returned from that ban, but he ended the ’18 season as a Giants first-stringer. The Bears are returning four starters from last season and have been trying ex-Seahawks right tackle Germain Ifedi at guard.
Here is the latest from the North divisions:
- The Steelers will let Mike Tomlin enter a contract year. Signed through 2021, Tomlin will not be extended this year, Art Rooney II said (via The Athletic’s Ed Bouchette, subscription required). The Steelers gave Tomlin his most recent extension last July, and he managed an eight-win season despite the largely Ben Roethlisberger-less Steelers ranking 32nd in offensive DVOA. Rooney said he plans to address the contracts of Tomlin and GM Kevin Colbert, who just signed a one-year extension, in 2021.
- One of the league’s healthiest teams last season, the Packers may be down a starter in Week 1. Billy Turner suffered a knee injury during a scrimmage and is uncertain for Green Bay’s opener, Rob Demovsky of ESPN.com notes. Turner played guard for the Packers last season but is competing with free agency addition Ricky Wagner at right tackle this year. Lane Taylor, who missed all of last season, is expected to play right guard opposite emerging talent Elgton Jenkins on the left side.
- For the second time in three weeks, the Browns brought in Cody Parkey for a visit. The veteran was part of a kicker group to work out for the Browns in August, though it was reported at the time the team was organizing a COVID-related emergency kicker list. Parkey briefly kicked for the Titans last season.
- Bears training camp coaching intern Henry Burris will stay on the team’s staff all season, Matt Nagy announced. Known mostly for his 17-season CFL run, Burris also was a Bears quarterback for a short time in the early 2000s. This will be his first NFL coaching gig.
- Vikings linebacker Cameron Smith underwent successful open-heart surgery recently, according to the Associated Press. Mike Zimmer said the second-year defender, who landed on Minnesota’s IR list, will remain in Philadelphia for the foreseeable future to recover.
Bears Expected To Start Mitchell Trubisky
Despite Nick Foles‘ superior NFL resume, the Bears are likely to start the season without a change at quarterback. Mitchell Trubisky is expected to start Chicago’s Week 1 game in Detroit after beating out Foles in a training camp competition, Adam Schefter of ESPN.com tweets.
This comes after a recent report indicated Foles was the more accurate passer during Bears camp, per Jeremy Fowler of ESPN.com (video link). But Trubisky was also reported to be improving. The Bears will give the former No. 2 overall pick another shot, despite not picking up his fifth-year option and trading for Foles this offseason.
Trubisky has been one of the NFL’s more maligned players over the course of his Chicago tenure. While he rated as QBR’s No. 3 passer in 2018 — when the Bears made a surprise run to the NFC North title — Trubisky regressed considerably in 2019. The former one-year North Carolina starter ranked 28th in QBR last season and averaged just 5.9 adjusted yards per attempt, prompting the Bears to acquire Foles from the Jaguars.
Foles, 31, did not fare particularly well last season either. After a broken collarbone sidelined him for much of his Jaguars debut/one-and-done season, Gardner Minshew supplanted him shortly after he returned to action. However, Foles orchestrated one of the best playoff stretches by a quarterback in NFL history in 2017, winning Super Bowl LII MVP honors. He then helped the Eagles back to the playoffs the following season, after replacing an injured Carson Wentz late in 2018. Foles’ Eagles beat Trubisky’s Bears in a wild-card game, though that contest is better known for Cody Parkey‘s game-ending missed field goal.
The Bears reworked Foles’ contract this offseason, but the veteran passer would still be a costly cut in 2021. A Foles release would not create any cap space for the Bears, and it would cost more than $10MM. But Trubisky is not under contract in 2021. He will, however, have a chance to bounce back in a contract year — at least at the season’s outset.
Bears Won’t Pursue Leonard Fournette
The Bears have been connected to 
Leonard Fournette, but it doesn’t sound like the former Jaguars standout will be coming to Chicago. When asked about the former No. 4 overall pick, head coach Matt Nagy told reporters that he’s comfortable with his current group of running backs (Twitter link via ESPN.com’s Jeff Dickerson).
The Jaguars released Fournette earlier this week and all 31 of the league’s other teams passed on claiming the remainder of his contract. Fournette would have earned nearly $4.2MM for 2020, and that price tag was too high for everyone else. Now, Fournette is a full-fledged free agent, but he’ll likely have to settle for less money than he wanted.
Fournette totaled a career-high 1,674 yards from scrimmage last season, but Jay Gruden wasn’t a huge fan of his work. Instead, Gruden signed old pal Chris Thompson to lead the charge and add some pass-catching ability to the backfield. Ryquell Armstead, a 2019 fifth-rounder who averaged just 3.1 yards per carry as a rookie, also figures to have a sizable role at RB.
Minor NFL Transactions: 8/31/20
Here are the NFL’s most recent minor moves:
Arizona Cardinals
- Waived: TE Ryan Becker, OL Steven Gonzalez, CB Zane Lewis, DE Adam Shuler
Baltimore Ravens
- Waived: DE John Daka, WR Michael Dereus, C Sean Pollard
- Placed on IR: WR DeAndrew White
Chicago Bears
- Re-Signed: RB Napoleon Maxwell
- Placed on IR: CB Michael Joseph
Detroit Lions
- Signed: DT Olive Sagapolu
- Placed on IR: FB Nick Bawden
Miami Dolphins
- Signed: WR Andy Jones
- Waived: LB James Crawford
New York Jets
- Claimed (from Cardinals): CB Zane Lewis
- Waived: K Brett Maher
San Francisco 49ers
- Waived: DL Alex Barrett
Seattle Seahawks
- Signed: WR Lance Lenoir
- Placed on IR: Branden Jackson
- Waived/injured: RB Patrick Carr
Washington Football Team
- Signed: WR Tony Brown
- Waived: WR Darvin Kidsy
Bears Will Not Name Starting QB Prior To Week 1
One of the league’s premier position battles will not be settled, at least publicly, until the Bears suit up for their regular-season opener.
Matt Nagy said Saturday he will not declare whether Mitchell Trubisky or Nick Foles has won the job prior to the Bears’ Week 1 game. The Bears will travel to Detroit for their 2020 opener.
Ordinarily, a team featuring a quarterback competition would name a starter by the time its third preseason game comes. With the COVID-19 pandemic prompting the NFL to scrap the preseason slate, the Bears will attempt to keep their decision in-house. Though, the clubhouse leader here will stand to see more reps than the likely QB2 in the coming days.
The Bears acquired Foles from the Jaguars to push Trubisky, who has not worked out to the team’s liking. The Bears passed on Trubisky’s fifth-year option in May.
Foles, 31, is also coming off a down year, suffering a broken collarbone in Week 1 and being replaced by sixth-round rookie Gardner Minshew shortly after he recovered from the injury. Foles, however, has a significant experience edge on Trubisky, who dropped from third in QBR in 2018 to 28th last season. While Foles has not shown much outside of Philadelphia, his two late-season runs with the Eagles — involving a Super Bowl LII MVP award and a wild-card win over the Bears a year later — certainly dwarf Trubisky’s accomplishments.
NFL Workout Updates: 8/28/20
Here are the workouts that took place around the NFL on Friday:
Buffalo Bills
- DT Daryle Banfield
- DT Toby Johnson
- DT Akeem Spence
- DT Gabe Wright
Chicago Bears
- LB Devante Bond
- RB Napoleon Maxwell (visit)
- LB Gabe Sewell
Detroit Lions
Kansas City Chiefs
- DB Hasan Sharif
Las Vegas Raiders
- WR Darren Andrews
- QB Kyle Lauletta
- WR Charone Peake
- WR T.J. Rahming
- QB Kyle Shurmur
Pittsburgh Steelers
Bears Work Out LB Alec Ogletree
After more than six months in free agency, Alec Ogletree has resurfaced on the NFL radar. The Bears brought in the former Rams first-round pick for a Friday workout, per Albert Breer of SI.com (on Twitter).
The Giants made Ogletree a cap casualty in February. This marks the first Ogletree news since then. The 29-year-old linebacker started 26 games for the Giants over the past two seasons, but the team dropped him before signing Blake Martinez to a lucrative deal.
Ogletree was largely unable to live up to his four-year, $42MM Rams extension in New York, but he did produce in 2018. The former No. 30 overall pick intercepted five passes and notched two defensive touchdowns in his first Giants season. He has started at least 15 games in a season four times (all with the Rams) and has four defensive TDs and 12 forced fumbles on his resume as well.
In Danny Trevathan and Roquan Smith, the Bears have two clear starters at linebacker. Behind them, however, Chicago’s roster houses 2018 fourth-round pick Joel Iyiegbuniwe and two recent UDFAs. Despite suiting up for 31 career games, Iyiegbuniwe has played just 26 defensive snaps. Both Smith and Trevathan have battled injuries in recent years, and the Bears lost longtime backup/spot starter Nick Kwiatkoski in free agency.
David Montgomery Suffers Groin Injury
THURSDAY, 10:02am: Montgomery will be out of action for 2-4 weeks, which means he still has a chance at playing in the Bears’ season opener against the Lions (Twitter link via NFL.com’s Ian Rapoport).
WEDNESDAY, 12:53pm: Bears running back David Montgomery went down with a non-contact injury on Wednesday, as Adam Schefter of ESPN.com tweets. After hobbling off of the field, the 23-year-old was diagnosed with a groin strain. Now, the Bears are awaiting word and hoping for the best. 
It’ll take at least a day or two to determine Montgomery’s timetable for recovery, but it’s possible that the Bears won’t have the young rusher for the start of the season. Without Montgomery, the Bears will have to lean even more on Tarik Cohen, plus support from Ryan Nall and Artavis Pierce. Cohen, of course, is utilized more as a pass-catcher than a traditional RB. Last year, he carried the ball just 64 times for 213 yards in total while recording a career-high 79 catches. Montgomery, meanwhile, logged 242 totes for 889 yards as a rookie.
This year, the Bears were counting on Montgomery to take a big step forward. The youngster has been eager to show what he can do, especially since cleaning up his diet.
“Whenever I had the craving for a Krispy Creme doughnut, I’d definitely go have one back in the day,” Montgomery said, via the team’s website. “But now, I fight the urge to go have one…I feel amazing. Everything feels good right now, as far as my body. I’m not as sore as I was last year because of the lack of food that I don’t need that has a lot of inflammation to it. And just running. Just being able to run and feeling good at how I run and being able to make the right cuts.”
Minor NFL Transactions: 8/25/20
Today’s minor moves:
Baltimore Ravens
- Signed: P Johnny Townsend, WR DeAndrew White
Buffalo Bills
- Released from IR: DT Niles Scott
Chicago Bears
- Signed: WR Alex Wesley
- Released: WR Trevor Davis
- Waived/injured: TE Darion Clark
Cincinnati Bengals
- Signed: C Frederick Mauigoa, DT Kahlil McKenzie
- Waived: G Clay Cordasco, WR Damion Willis
Cleveland Browns
- Claimed (from Dolphins): DE Curtis Weaver
- Placed on IR: S Grant Delpit
Las Vegas Raiders
- Signed: DE Sharif Finch
- Waived: DE Ade Aruna
Los Angeles Rams
- Signed: LB Daniel Bituli, LB Derrick Moncrief
- Waived: LB Bryan London, QB Josh Love
Miami Dolphins
- Re-signed: LB Trent Harris
New Orleans Saints
- Signed: DB Kemon Hall
New York Jets
- Signed: RB Pete Guerriero
- Waived: DB Anthony Cioffi
Philadelphia Eagles
- Signed: TE Tyrone Swoopes
- Waived: WR Robert Davis
San Francisco 49ers
- Waived: RB Salvon Ahmed
This Date In Transactions History: Victor Cruz Retires From NFL
Two years ago today, former Giants superstar Victor Cruz retired from football. Cruz was still shy of his 32nd birthday, but a string of injuries ultimately slowed down the charismatic salsa dancer. 
From 2011 through 2013, Cruz averaged 80 receptions, 1,209 yards, and eight end zone salsas per season. The first year in that set basically came out of the blue. Cruz joined the Giants as an undrafted free agent out of UMass in 2010. In 2011, he managed 82 grabs, 1,536 yards, and nine TDs. His 2012 encore wasn’t quite as efficient (he posted an 86/1092/10 stat line), but he was still recognized as a vital part of the Giants’ passing attack and earned his first career Pro Bowl nod.
Not wanting to risk losing Cruz to free agency – particularly after watching him carve up the 49ers in the NFC Championship Game – the locked Cruz down with a five-year extension worth up to $43MM. Cruz could have gambled by staying on track for free agency after the 2013 season, but the added security of the deal, including nearly $16MM in guarantees, made it a worthwhile tradeoff.
In hindsight, it was the smart play for Cruz. Initially slowed by a heel bruise, he came two yards shy of the 1,000-yard mark in 2013, despite missing two games. Unfortunately, in 2014, the course of his career changed dramatically. A torn patellar tendon ended his campaign after just six games and a calf injury in the following season put him under the knife before he could take the field.
By the time Cruz returned to action in 2016, the Giants’ offense was fully focused on Odell Beckham Jr. Meanwhile, Cruz’s trademark speed was gone, and so was his longtime mentor Tom Coughlin. Cruz took a pay cut to stay in the fold, but he registered just 39 catches for 586 yards. After that, he moved on to the Bears, only to suffer a season-ending injury at the end of the preseason. When his personal campaign to return to the Giants failed, Cruz called it quits.