The Chicago Bears had tried to sign a former NFL starting running back to their ranks before knocking off the Pittsburgh Steelers in Week 12’s home win.
According to NFL insider Aaron Wilson, former Houston Texans rookie standout and starting running back Dameon Pierce had an offer on the table from the Bears before he accepted a contract offer from the Kansas City Chiefs to join their practice squad.
Former Texans starting running back Dameon Pierce, who’s signing with #Chiefs practice squad, had offers from Chargers, Broncos, Bears, Eagles, Colts, Bengals, along with interest from Dolphins, per NFL sources,” Wilson wrote on X ahead of Sunday Night Football on November 23.
Wilson also noted that Eagles general manager Howie Roseman “made a strong push” to sign Pierce after the Texans waived him last week, including having a ‘personal call” with the back about a potential signing before he ultimately landed with the Chiefs.
Pierce went unclaimed on waivers last week after the Texans waived him from their active roster before their Thursday Night Football showdown with the Buffalo Bills. Now, he will have an opportunity to earn a game-day promotion with the Chiefs, who are currently leaning on Kareem Hunt with Isiah Pacheco still out with an injury.
Dameon Pierce Had Fallen Off With Texans After 2022
Pierce would have been an intriguing addition for the Bears had he accepted their offer over the Chiefs’ and brought his 20 games of starting experience to Chicago’s backfield.
That said, Pierce is no longer the rising NFL star that he once seemed to be.
Pierce broke onto the scene for the Texans as a fourth-round rookie in 2022, putting up 1,104 scrimmage yards (939 rushing) and five touchdowns in just 13 games of action. He also received the ninth-most votes for the NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year award, interestingly beating out new teammate Pacheco, a seventh-round rookie at the time.
Since then, however, Pierce has steadily fallen off with the Texans. He tanked in 2023 to the point where veteran Devin Singletary eventually replaced him as the starter. The Texans then pushed him to the back burner again in 2024 when they traded for star veteran Joe Mixon, who proceeded to handle the majority of the carries for the offense.
While Pierce seemed to have a chance to reclaim a role in 2025 when Mixon suffered an injury in the offseason, he only made it two games into the regular season before the Texans decided to slide him out of the rotation for fourth-round rookie Woody Marks, leaning on him as their change-of-pace back alongside 2025 addition Nick Chubb.
Pierce heads to Kansas City with just seven carries for 26 yards on the season.
Who Else Could Bears Target to Bolster RB Room?
While the Bears did not land Pierce, they are evidently looking to add more talent to their backfield with multiple of their running backs dealing with injuries in Week 13.
The Bears had their primary duo of D’Andre Swift and rookie Kyle Monangai available against the Steelers, but they did not have Roschon Johnson (thumb) or Travis Homer (hamstring/knee), both of whom were ruled out in the final injury report for the game.
The Bears also took things a step further with Johnson over the weekend, placing him on injured reserve in a move that means he will miss at least their next three games.
With two backs down, the Bears signed Brittain Brown from the practice squad to the 53-man roster to give themselves an emergency option for their backfield and someone who could cover Homer’s special teams snaps. Even still, they do not currently have a running back on their practice squad, something they may try to correct in Week 13.
The free-agent market has several veteran options available for signing, including Jamaal Williams — who has a connection to head coach Ben Johnson from their time together with the Detroit Lions. Zack Moss, Gus Edwards and Ezekiel Elliott are also without teams at the moment; although, they may not want practice-squad roles.
Ian Wheeler, a former preseason standout for the Bears, could also be an option if the team is seeking a more familiar option, but it is unclear how the new staff feels about him after waiving him in August and declining to re-sign him to the practice squad.
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