Bears’ Free-Agent Signing Predicted to Boot Drafted WR From Roster

The Chicago Bears are crowded at the wide receiver position heading into their first practice of 2025 NFL training camp. Could their current logjam end with them booting one of their recent draft picks from the 53-man roster, though?

Windy City Gridiron’s Jacob Infante recently made that case while trying his hand at predicting the Bears’ 53-man roster for the 2025 season heading into the start of camp. While he stuck to headcount expectations — that the Bears will keep six receivers — he projected 2023 fourth-round pick Tyler Scott will lose his spot to veteran Miles Boykin.

“Miles Boykin gets the edge over Tyler Scott due to his size and special teams experience,” Infante wrote Monday. “Boykin has played at least half of his team’s special teams snaps the last three seasons he’s played in the NFL. Scott hasn’t played over 15% in either of his two seasons with the Bears.”

The Bears signed Boykin to a one-year contract in April, making him their third free-agent signing at the position behind veterans Olamide Zaccheaus and Devin Duvernay. While many have presumed Scott will make the roster as the Bears’ sixth receiver, he could face a legitimate challenge from Boykin, who has played in 73 career games.

“At 6-foot-4 and 220 pounds, Boykin gives them a more well-rounded receiver room than just having three smaller speed receivers off the bench,” Infante concluded.

Has Tyler Scott Run out of Time to Win Roster Spot?

Scott has pulled off something of a disappearing act over the past year with the Bears.

The 133rd overall pick in 2023, Scott played a limited role as a rookie but showed some promise, catching 17 passes for 168 yards and 10 first-downs on 32 targets. He dropped some passes and misplayed some of his targets, including a deep shot from then-starter Justin Fields for a would-be touchdown, but his youth and speed seemed to make him a moldable talent for the future who could take the next step with time and patience.

Instead, Scott became a non-factor in his second year. He played just 20 total offensive snaps and caught only a single pass. He also struggled to justify his case for game-day activation with virtually no role in the third phase, playing only 35 special-teams snaps and spending six games as a healthy inactive for the Bears.

While the mess that was the Bears’ 2024 offense (i.e., having three different offensive coordinators) didn’t help Scott any, it puts him in a difficult situation with new coaches who are looking to revive the offense and less willing to tolerate lackluster performance. If Scott cannot wow Ben Johnson’s staff in camp, he likely won’t stick around for 2025.

How Many WR Will Bears Keep on 53-Man Roster?

With 12 wide receivers on the roster at the start of camp, the Bears have several ways they could go about building their receiving corps for the 2025 regular season, but just how many would it make sense for them to keep on the 53-man roster?

Six, as Infante and others have projected, seems like a logical number. The Bears will keep starters D.J. Moore and Rome Odunze and second-round rookie Luther Burden III without a shadow of a doubt (even if Burden’s springtime injury lingers). It would also make sense for them to keep Zaccheaus and Duvernay for veteran depth, especially since Duvernay provides them with a former All-Pro talent in the return specialist role.

Beyond those five, though, the Bears could draw the line anywhere between five and seven, depending on how the competitions in camp play out. If Boykin, Scott and the Bears’ other collection of receivers struggle to stand out, they could simply keep five receivers and place a bigger emphasis on using their tight ends in the passing game.

If multiple receivers stand out in camp and the preseason, though, the Bears could wind up keeping seven. That could mean rostering both Boykin and Scott, or they could even replace Scott with a rookie better suited for special teams, such as JP Richardson.

The Bears will officially get the roster battles underway with Wednesday’s first practice.