Minor NFL Transactions: 5/14/17
Today’s minor moves:
Atlanta Falcons
- Signed: WR Reggie Davis, DL Taniela Tupou
Chicago Bears
- Signed: WR Titus Davis
- Waived: WR Levonte Whitfield
Philadelphia Eagles
- Signed: T Victor Salako
- Waived/injured: QB Jerod Evans
Pittsburgh Steelers
- Signed: TE Phazahn Odom (Twitter link via Aaron Wilson of the Houston Chronicle)
Bears To Meet With Victor Cruz
Finally, things are picking up for Victor Cruz. The former Giants wide receiver will meet with the Bears on Monday, Kim Jones of NFL Network tweets. 
This marks the second known scheduled meeting for Cruz and the third reported team with interest in the veteran. Cruz will head to Jacksonville later this month to meet with the Jaguars and the Ravens are working to line up a visit as well.
The Bears have already made major changes to their wide receiver group after moving on from Alshon Jeffery and parting ways with Eddie Royal. Now, they project to have major roles for free agent additions Kendall Wright and Markus Wheaton plus the returning Cameron Meredith and Kevin White. Cruz would probably have to take a backseat to most of those younger talents if he comes to Chicago, but he might be able to carve out a role in the slot. Some of Mike Glennon‘s early struggles in Tampa Bay were attributed to a lack of a slot option, so he would probably having Cruz.
Bears To Try Out Denard Robinson
Free agent running back Denard Robinson will be among the Bears’ tryout players at rookie minicamp, tweets Rich Campbell of the Chicago Tribune.
The 26-year-old Robinson, formerly a quarterback at Michigan, spent the first four seasons of his career in Jacksonville after it selected him in the fifth round of the 2013 draft. Robinson appeared in 55 of the Jaguars’ 64 games in that span and made 13 starts, with the lion’s share of his 263 carries coming in 2014. That season, Robinson piled up 135 rushes for 582 yards – good for a quality YPC of 4.3 – scored four touchdowns and totaled a personal-high 23 catches. Robinson’s production has waned since then, as he posted the second-worst YPC (3.5) of his career last year on 41 attempts and hauled in only three receptions.
As was the case in Jacksonville, Robinson would be a backup in Chicago if he were to improbably make the team. Starter Jordan Howard was quietly among the best backs in the NFL as a rookie last year, but neither Jeremy Langford nor Ka’Deem Carey did much behind him. They remain in the fold, while free agent pickup Benny Cunningham is aboard as a newcomer.
Bears Pick Up 13 UDFAs
The Bears have inked 13 undrafted free agents to deals, including…
- Joel Bouagnon, RB (Northern Illinois)
- Rashaad Coward, DL (Old Dominion)
- Hendrick Ekpe, LB (Minnesota)
- Tanner Gentry, WR (Wyoming)
- Franko House, TE (Ball State)
- Isaiah Irving, LB (San Jose State)
- Dieugot Joseph, OL (Florida International)
- Mitch Kirsch, OL (James Madison)
- Andy Phillips, K (Utah)
- Alex Scearce, LB (Coastal Carolina)
- Jhajuan Seales, WR (Oklahoma State)
- Freddie Stevenson, FB (Florida State)
- Levonte Whitfield, WR (Florida State)
Bears Sign Two Draft Picks
Chicago Bears
Bears Release WR Eddie Royal
The Bears announced that they have released wide receiver Eddie Royal. In related news, the team has also waived offensive lineman Cornelius Edison, fullback Paul Lasike, and defensive lineman Will Sutton. 
[RELATED: Bears Willing To Trade TE Zach Miller?]
Royal, 31 later this month, was an expected cap casualty after the March signing of Kendall Wright. The veteran had one year remaining on his contract, but his $5MM salary was completely non-guaranteed. Royal underwent surgery in late December to fix his turf toe issue and the fact that his release was formalized today could be an indication that he is able to pass a physical and suit up for a team.
Royal appeared in nine games last season for the Bears until he was placed on IR. In his injury-shortened season, he hauled in 33 catches for 369 yards and two touchdowns. The receiver first made a name for himself in Denver where he caught passes from Jay Cutler in the 2008 season. Now, both men are out of Chicago.
The Bears are projected to have Cameron Meredith, Wright, Kevin White, and Markus Wheaton as their top four receivers this year.
Bears Willing To Trade TE Zach Miller?
The Bears told rival clubs at the scouting combine earlier this year that if they selected a tight end in the draft, they could be willing to deal veteran tight end Zach Miller, Michael Lombardi reported on The Ringer NFL Show (SoundCloud link).
Chicago did indeed draft a tight end, picking up Ashland’s Adam Shaheen in the second round. Additionally, the Bears signed free agent tight end Dion Sims to a three-year, $18MM deal this offseason that included $6MM in guaranteed money. Other tight ends on Chicago’s roster include Daniel Brown, Ben Braunecker, and MyCole Pruitt.
Miller, 32, finished the 2016 campaign on injured reserve after suffering a broken foot in Week 11. In only 10 games, however, Miller had already surpassed his 2015 reception and yardage totals while scoring four touchdowns. In his two seasons with the Bears, Miller has averaged 52 catches for 592 yards and four touchdowns on a per 16-game rate.
Entering the final year of his contract, Miller is due a $1MM base salary in 2017. Any club that acquires Miller would be responsible for that figure, as well as $1MM in per-game roster bonuses. The Bears, meanwhile, would incur $500K in dead money if they trade Miller.
Bears To Sign LB Dan Skuta
The Bears have signed outside linebacker Dan Skuta, according to Adam Caplan of ESPN.com (on Twitter). It’s a one-year deal, according to a team announcement. 
Skuta was released by the Jaguars roughly one month ago in a move that saved the team $4.1MM against the 2017 cap. In late April, he visited with the Patriots, but he left New England without a deal.
The 31-year-old came to Jacksonville in 2015 after notching five sacks as a reserve with the Niners. Unfortunately, he did not live up to the five-year, $20.5MM pact. Last year, he appeared in just 24.8% of the Jags’ snaps and made just two starts in his 13 games.
The Bears have a fairly deep OLB group with projected starters Willie Young and Leonard Floyd and reserves including Pernell McPhee, Sam Acho, and Lamarr Houston. However, Houston could be a cap casualty this summer since the team can release him for $5.01MM in savings versus just $1.98MM in dead money. As it stands, he’s projected to carry a hefty $6.99MM cap number in the fourth year of a five-year, $35MM deal.
Details On Jaye Howard's Bears Deal
- Jaye Howard‘s deal with the Bears calls for a base salary of $775K but can make up to $4MM with incentives, Field Yates of ESPN.com tweets. The Chiefs will be keeping a close eye on Howard’s performance thanks to the offset language in his contract. The Chiefs can recoup up to $3.75MM in cap space if Howard maxes out his incentives.
Bears Met With Mitch Trubisky Secretly
The Bears played it close to the vest before making their Mitch Trubisky trade from No. 3 to No. 2, one that headlined the draft and one that may have the team’s power structure at odds. Chicago’s brass tried to throw teams off the scent early in the process by sending an armada of personnel to Deshaun Watson‘s pro day while orchestrating a secret dinner meeting with Trubisky, per Jeff Dickerson of ESPN.com. The Bears also “begged” Trubisky’s camp not to leak news of that summit, and that part of the operation succeeded. Ryan Pace followed Dave Caldwell‘s secretive playbook when he made the Blake Bortles pick few expected.