The Chicago Bears announced a few roster moves on Saturday leading up to the team's game against the Detroit Lions, including ending the season of one offensive lineman who had a disappointing first season in Chicago.
The Bears placed Ryan Bates on the injured reserve due to a concussion he suffered against the Green Bay Packers in Week 11. This will be Bates' second stint on the injured reserve of the season and with three games left to be played, the move will end his season.
In a corresponding move, the Bears filled the open roster spot by signing running back Darrynton Evans off of the practice squad. Evans was elevated in each of the previous two games with the team dealing with a few injuries at the position.
The Bears traded for Bates during the spring, sending a 2024 fifth-round pick to the Buffalo Bills. Before making the deal, Poles tried to land Bates in 2022 by signing him to an offer sheet as a restricted free agent, until the Bills matched the offer. The continued pursuit has yet to really pay off.
Bates' first year in Chicago was a disappointing one considering the veteran only played 105 offensive snaps and only started two games at right guard.
Bates dealt with an offseason shoulder injury in the late summer that forced him to miss a large chunk of the season. The injury forced Bates to land on the injured reserve after Week 1 and actually forced him to seek treatment outside of the country.
According to the Chicago Tribune's Brad Biggs, Bates had to go to Panama while on the IR to receive stem cell therapy (stem cell treatment is not approved in the United States). Bates' shoulder structurally is fine, but it was revealed that he was dealing with arthritis that continued to worsen each time he returned to the field, prompting the team to place him on the IR.
Bates noted to Biggs that the decision was the best choice for his injury and the shoulder has since felt much better, even calling it life-changing. Bates returned to the field as a starter in Week 10 before suffering a concussion seven offensive snaps into the following game.
The Bears brought Bates in with the intention of starting him at center. Once the shoulder injury popped up over the summer, Coleman Shelton ran away with the starting job, leaving Bates to compete at right guard.
This season, Bates played well when on the field allowing just one sack and three pressures on 68 pass blocking snaps. But, at the end of the day, the best ability is availability and Bates wasn't able to provide that.
The 27-year-old will be under contract in Chicago for the 2025 season and can look to bounce back by fighting for a starting job at center or right guard once fully healthy. But, right now, the investment looks like another miss for Poles.
With the fifth-round pick given up in the trade, the Bills traded it back to the Bears during the draft for Chicago to move back into the fifth-round and select defensive end Austin Booker in exchange for the team's 2025 fourth-round pick. Booker has played 28% of the team's defensive snaps this season and has 1.5 sacks.
