The Chicago Bears are adding another interior offensive lineman with starting experience ahead of Week 4’s road matchup with the Las Vegas Raiders.
According to the team’s transaction wire, the Bears signed former Cincinnati Bengals guard/center Trey Hill on Friday to their practice squad, filling the roster spot that opened when the team promoted Tanoh Kpassagnon to the 53-man roster last week.
Hill — a 2021 sixth-round pick — appeared in 25 regular-season games and seven playoff games over his three seasons with the Bengals, playing 211 offensive snaps as a rookie and making two starts at center and one start at right guard in his first season.
After a solid rookie debut, though, Hill played just seven more offensive snaps over the next two seasons with the Bengals, spending the majority of 2023 as a healthy scratch.
Hill also spent time with the Green Bay Packers in training camp this summer, but they did not retain him for their initial 53-man roster during August’s roster cutdown.
The Bears now have three interior offensive linemen signed to their 16-man practice squad after picking up Hill on Friday. They also have center Ricky Stromberg and guard Jordan McFadden — both 2023 draft picks for other teams — vying for game-day looks.
The Bears (1-2) will kick off against the Raiders (1-2) at 4:25 p.m. ET on Sunday.
Could Trey Hill Earn Roster Elevation Opportunity?
After struggling to make it work with the Bengals and Packers, Hill has now found his next opportunity with the Bears, but does he have a realistic path to playing time?
Heading into Week 4, the Bears have little reason to elevate any reinforcements for the interior of their offensive line for Sunday’s game against the Raiders. Starting veteran center Drew Dalman — who signed a three-year, $42 million contract with the team in free agency — has managed to stay off the injury report through the first four weeks.
Meanwhile, Dalman’s backup, veteran Ryan Bates, has also remained healthy.
The Bears do, however, have a reason to develop another young center behind Dalman. They had former sixth-round pick Doug Kramer Jr. in the mix in training camp, trying to lock down the No. 2 center role, but he suffered an injury that landed him on injured reserve before the season. The Bears then waived him from IR on September 8.
Even still, Stromberg and McFadden have each spent more time with the Bears. That will likely give them an advantage over Hill in terms of knowing their responsibilities in head coach Ben Johnson’s offense and having chemistry with the Bears’ quarterbacks.
Maybe Hill can bloom into a more promising lineman for the Bears. But, for now, he is little more than an intriguing developmental project for their practice-squad unit.
Darnell Wright Ruled Out Against Raiders in Week 4
The Bears might not need immediate help with the interior of their offensive line, but they do have one significant offensive line injury heading into Week 4’s matchup.
The Bears officially ruled out starting right tackle Darnell Wright with an elbow injury against the Raiders this weekend. Wright had dropped out of last Sunday’s win over the Dallas Cowboys in the second quarter after injuring his elbow and did not return.
With Wright out of the lineup, the Bears seem most likely to start Theo Benedet — a 2024 undrafted rookie — in his place at right tackle. They could also consider tabbing second-round rookie Ozzy Trapilo for his first career NFL starts; although, they have made him a healthy scratch in each of the past two weeks in favor of Benedet.
The Bears do not have any practice-squad offensive tackles to consider elevating from their practice squad against the Raiders, but they could keep 2024 third-round pick Kiran Amegadjie — who has also been a regular healthy scratch — active to compensate.
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