The Chicago Bears had a busy offseason as they prepare to compete in a loaded NFC North. With a new coaching staff and plenty of additions, some players from the previous regime may be expendable.
The Bears drafted Shemar Turner with the 62nd overall pick out of Texas A&M University. They also signed Grady Jarrett. With those two additions, FanSided’s Terrence Jordan predicted that Zacch Pickens would not survive the next round of roster cuts.
“Ryan Poles took steps to address that weakness by signing veteran defensive tackle Grady Jarrett away from the Falcons and edge rusher Dayo Odeyingbo away from the Colts,” wrote Jordan. “He then drafted highly touted Texas A&M DT Shemar Turner with the 62nd overall pick after trading down in the second round.
“That likely leaves Zacch Pickens as the odd man out. Pickens played only nine games last year as he dealt with an ongoing groin issue, and when he was on the field, his production was extremely limited.”
Pickens did end up making three starts for the Bears last year. However, he had just one sack and 19 tackles on the year. As a rookie, he had half a sack and 20 tackles in 17 games.
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The Bears drafted him in the third round of the 2023 NFL Draft out of the University of South Carolina. However, he has failed to produce, and the Bears’ offseason moves send a clear message to him about his future with the team. He will need to show drastic improvement to make the team this year.
“Dennis Allen is the team’s new defensive coordinator, and he’ll be looking to get his kind of guys in, players like Turner who are more versatile,” wrote Jordan. “Pickens hasn’t done enough during his two seasons on the Bears to merit keeping his roster spot.”
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