The Chicago Bears won’t get away with trying to sneak linebacker Carl Jones Jr. back onto their practice squad for a third time coming off Week 14’s road loss.
According to the NFL’s official transaction wire, the Baltimore Ravens claimed Jones off waivers on Monday, December 8, adding him to their 53-man roster to bolster their linebacker depth with Tavius Robinson and Jay Higgins IV both still on injured reserve.
The Bears had waived Jones — who joined them as a UDFA in 2024 — from their active roster ahead of Week 14’s kickoff against the Green Bay Packers, giving his roster spot to guard Jordan McFadden to strengthen the depth of their interior offensive line. The expectation was the Bears would try to re-sign Jones once he cleared waivers, though.
After all, Chicago had already run the risk of losing Jones on waivers twice before. The Bears waived him the first time during their 53-man roster cuts in August, re-signing him to their initial practice squad. The second time came when they activated veteran Amen Ogbongbemiga — a core special-teamer — off injured reserve on November 6.
Whether the Bears intended to bring back Jones for a third time is unclear, but it seems likely they would have tried, given their commitment to his development since 2024.
The Bears (9-4) will host the Cleveland Browns (3-10) for their next game at 1 p.m. ET on Sunday, December 14.
Had Bears Already Shifted Focus Off Carl Jones Jr.?
The Bears were not going to get away with sliding a contributor between their practice squad and active roster forever. And even if Jones had cleared waivers and they signed him back to their practice squad, nothing would have stopped the Ravens — or any other team that wanted him — from poaching him for their active roster, anyway.
Considering the other moves the Bears made ahead of the Packers game, though, it is possible they had already shifted their focus to another emergency-option linebacker.
The Bears also flexed veteran linebacker and former special-teams Pro Bowler Jalen Reeves-Maybin from their practice squad to their game-day roster against the Packers. While he did not play at all on defense or record any statistics, he did play on 17 of the Bears’ 25 total special teams snaps, which is similar to what they’d asked Jones to do.
Maybe the Bears are just content to let Reeves-Maybin hold down the fort as a depth piece for their linebacker room until starter Tremaine Edmunds returns from IR. He has one remaining elevation opportunity before the Bears would need to sign him to the active roster — as they did with Jones — and Edmunds is eligible to return next week.
Either way, the Bears should keep an eye on what the Ravens ask Jones to do and how he performs down the stretch. If he pops on the tape and the Ravens do not commit to bringing him back, they could always explore a reunion in the offseason once again.
Will Bears Hold Linebackers to Snap Counts vs. Browns?
The Bears will have Reeves-Maybin on hand to support their linebacker corps if they need help again in Week 15’s matchup with the Browns, but will they need it?
That could depend on whether they hold their linebackers to snap counts again.
The Bears returned both veteran T.J. Edwards and Noah Sewell, their opening-day starter at the strong-side role, to the lineup against the Packers, but neither one of them played a full slate of snaps. Chicago restricted Edwards to 33 defensive snaps, about 62% of the total, while Sewell played just one defensive snap and 10 on special teams.
While snap counts make sense for their first games back, though, it remains to be seen whether the Bears will implement them again against the Browns. If they have both of them back at full strength, then there won’t be much reason to elevate Reeves-Maybin.
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