The Chicago Bears made some cuts on Sunday, releasing veteran quarterback P.J. Walker, waiving offensive lineman Alex Leatherwood, and waiving/injuring guard Gabe Houy. This move leaves the Bears with 84 players, and they will need to trim 31 more before the NFL's mandatory 53-man limit by 4 pm EST on Tuesday.
Walker signed with the Bears in March after spending the previous three seasons with the Panthers. He appeared in 15 games with seven starts for Carolina, throwing for 1,461 yards with five touchdowns, 11 interceptions, and a 63.9 passer rating. In three preseason games with the Bears, Walker completed 11 of 23 passes for 96 yards with one touchdown, one interception, and a 55.7 passer rating.
With Walker's departure, the Bears are left with three quarterbacks on their roster: starter Justin Fields and backups Tyson Bagent and Nathan Peterman. Fields, a first-round draft pick in 2021, has shown promise in the preseason and is expected to be the team's starting quarterback at some point this season.
Leatherwood was selected by the Raiders with the 17th pick in the first round of the 2021 draft out of Alabama. He started all 17 games as a rookie before being waived last August 31. The Bears claimed him the next day, and he appeared in four games last season, playing 32 snaps on offense and 11 on special teams.
Houy signed with the Bears this year as an undrafted free agent from Pittsburgh. He was carted off the field in the second half of Saturday's preseason finale against the Bills with an injury.
Overall, the Bears made some tough decisions in cutting these players, but they need to make these moves to get down to the mandatory roster limit. The team is hoping that they have the right players to make a run in the upcoming season.