Chicago

Bears

Sweat was upgraded to a full practice on Friday, so there doesn’t seem to be much risk of him missing Chicago’s 2024 opener. Acquired from Washington at the trade deadline, Sweat played a crucial role in the Bears’ turnaround on defense over the second half of the 2023 season. He also signed a four-year, $98 million extension shortly after the trade. Sweat will look to get familiar with titans quarterback Will Levis on Sunday.

Healthy or not, Johnson isn’t on the fantasy radar for Week 1. His presence on passing downs will be annoying for D’Andre Swift, who is already in a touch squeeze based on Kahlil Herbert’s role in the backfield. Chicago’s running back room is shaping up to be one of the more frustrating fantasy situations on a week-to-week basis.

Allen has been limited in practices as he continues to work his way back from the heel injury that ended his 2023 campaign. It does seem likely that Allen will play at this point, but he might not get the same amount of snaps one would hope for. If Allen can’t go, it’s a big booster for Rome Odunze for Sunday’s opener against Tennessee.

It’s just something to file away in the Bears’ backfield. The RB3, Johnson isn’t helping his cause with the kind of issue that is known to linger.

We had not seen any summer concern as to Allen’s status, so it’s a bit eyebrow-raising he’s still “limited” with the issue that ended his 2023. There is still every reason to believe he will suit up against the Titans, while it’s most likely the Bears are just limiting a veteran’s reps in practices he doesn’t truly need. It’s still something to monitor when the WR3 makes his Chicago debut Sunday.

Johnson’s toe injury could be problematic if it limits his availability on Sunday. The Bears are three-deep at running back, which already puts the second-year pro in a precarious position. If Johnson is good to go, he should have access to some sort of passing-down role. EDGE Montez Sweat was also limited by a toe injury though his role is not at all in jeopardy as the Bears’ top pass rusher.

Allen missed the 2023 season’s final four games with a heel injury, so although his limited participation this early in the week is a positive, kicking 2024 off with the same injury is noteworthy. We will continue monitoring his Week 1 status though fantasy managers should expect him to play for the time being. First-round rookie WR Rome Odunze would likely receive a significant target share increase if Allen were to sit on Sunday.

Jacobs says he declined to sign with the Chiefs, along with the Broncos, Bears, Cardinals, Dolphins, Giants and Texans. Jacobs’ statement perhaps most profoundly applies to the Chiefs’ starter Isiah Pacheco. The Chiefs’ front office allowed Jerick McKinnon to walk this offseason, publicly praising Pacheco’s three-down and scoring-position potential while adding only UDFA Carson Steele to the mix through the preseason’s conclusion. The Chiefs then signed pass-catching specialist Samaje Perine on Wednesday, in what was thought to be a likely depth-related move. The Chiefs’ prior pursuit of Jacobs, a capable three-down player, casts a slightly different light on Perine’s signing though; the front office may be less comfortable with increasing Pacheco’s receiving usage than it appeared for much of the summer. While Pacheco should still be viewed as a locked-in fantasy football RB1, his range of outcomes is now slightly wider than it was a week ago.

Reed battled for the backup quarterback job despite being an UDFA out of Western Kentucky, and while he lost that competition to Tyson Bagent, he’ll stay in the organization.

Scales, who signed a one-year deal with the Bears in March, will begin the regular season on injured reserve. The Bears are expected to sign long snapper Scott Daly to take Scales’ place for now.