Bear Digest

Bears Bring Back One of Their Old Draft Picks on Practice Squad

Seventh-round pick Travis Bell was stolen away from the practice squad by the Atlanta Falcons last year but now he's back with the Bears.

Gene Chamberlain

Travis Bell gets up and gives a leg kick in preseason after a tackle for loss against Tennessee.
Travis Bell gets up and gives a leg kick in preseason after a tackle for loss against Tennessee. / David Banks-Imagn Images
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He's back, one of Ryan Poles' favorite human beings.

Bears 2023 seventh-round draft pick Travis Bell has made the rounds after being waived, put on the Bears practice squad and then plucked away last year.

Now the defensive tackle from Kennesaw State is back with the Bears practice squad and the team had to put practice squad defensive lineman Sam Roberts on injured reserve. They did not describe the injury to Roberts.

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"This is probably one of my favorite human beings," Poles had said of Bell after the draft.

The Bears had been in love with the 6-foot-1, 305-pound tackle after visiting with him before the draft because of the desire he had always shown and work ethic on and off the field.

"I didn't want him to leave after his 30-visit and he didn't want to leave, either," Poles had said. "There’s something different about this guy. He is passionate about the game."

Passion or not, Bell didn't fit into the defensive line plans last year. They had him on the practice squad, which means he is a free agent. The Falcons swooped in and signed him away at the end of October.

In Atlanta, he got into two games and made two tackles and Atlanta released him in December. The Bengals signed him off waivers and had him throughout training camp and preseason this year before waiving him on last cuts.

The Bears are a bit depleted at defensive tackle at the moment. Zacch Pickens has a groin injury and did not practice on Wednesday or Thursday. He has played in just one of the three games this year. Andrew Billings had knee soreness and went through only a limited practice on Wednesday, then was unable to practice Thursday.

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Gene Chamberlain

GENE CHAMBERLAIN

BearDigest.com publisher Gene Chamberlain has covered the Chicago Bears full time as a beat writer since 1994 and prior to this on a part-time basis for 10 years. He covered the Bears as a beat writer for Suburban Chicago Newspapers, the Daily Southtown, Copley News Service and has been a contributor for the Daily Herald, the Associated Press, Bear Report, CBS Sports.com and The Sporting News. He also has worked a prep sports writer for Tribune Newspapers and Sun-Times newspapers.