A former Green Bay Packers draft pick has lost his roster spot with the Chicago Bears ahead of the latter’s Week 17 matchup against the San Francisco 49ers.
According to the team’s official transaction wire, the Bears waived former defensive tackle Jonathan Ford — a 2022 seventh-round pick for the Packers — from their 53-man roster in a series of roster moves ahead of Sunday Night Football at the 49ers.
Ford joined the Bears’ active roster on October 25 after expending his three practice-squad elevation opportunities in the first five games, appearing in eight games before the team waived him on Saturday. He had four tackles, none solo, on 111 total snaps.
The Bears also activated sixth-round rookie guard Luke Newman from the injured reserve list, giving him Ford’s spot on the 53-man roster in a corresponding move.
The Bears (11-4) will face the 49ers (11-4) in a battle of two NFC playoff teams when they kick off in the prime-time slot at 8:20 p.m. ET on Sunday, December 28.
Jonathan Ford Disappointed After Some 2024 Promise
Ford spent the majority of his first three seasons in the NFL with the Packers, holding an active-roster spot for the entirety of his rookie year but playing no games for them.
The Bears, however, signed Ford off the Packers’ practice squad early last December, playing him in each of their final four games to end the 2024 regular season. He had nine tackles with one for a loss in his first 77 career defensive snaps for Chicago, good enough to receive an exclusive rights free agent contract tender to return in 2025.
While Ford started the 2025 season on the practice squad, the Bears elevated him in three consecutive games — from Week 4 to Week 7 — before eventually signing him to the 53-man roster before Week 8’s game. He went on to play in five of the next six games, but his snap count gradually declined, as his favor seemingly did with the staff.
Ultimately, the Bears put Ford on the shelf after giving him a season-low five defensive snaps in Week 13’s win over the Philadelphia Eagles. He spent his final three games in Chicago as a healthy scratch, making him an easy cut with Newman coming off IR.
Bears Also Elevated Rookie WR for ‘SNF’ Against 49ers
While Ford’s deduction and Newman’s activation were the only two lasting changes the Bears made to their active roster before Week 17’s matchup, they did also make a pair of practice-squad elevations on December 27 to boost their ranks against the 49ers.
The Bears elevated both undrafted rookie wide receiver JP Richardson and defensive back Dallis Flowers to the active roster for their road game against the 49ers. Flowers is on his third elevation of the season, but Richardson — a former TCU starter — is getting his first and will likely make his NFL debut for the Bears during Sunday night’s game.
The Bears had three of their wide receivers on the injury report throughout the week, including starter Rome Odunze — whom they ruled out for a fourth consecutive game. Neither Devin Duvernay nor Luther Burden III received an injury designation in the final report, though, making it unlikely Richardson sees many, if any, offensive snaps.
Even still, it wouldn’t be a total surprise to see head coach Ben Johnson cook up a play or two for Richardson, as he did multiple times for undrafted rookie Jahdae Walker — an initial 53-man roster member — during Week 16’s overtime win over the Packers.
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