Bears Bring in Practice Squad Duo

Two new Bears practice squad players arrived as part of Monday roster moves, including a player who had stood out in preseason for Tampa Bay.

Bears GM Ryan Poles got one of the two game balls players awarded after Sunday's win, with Matt Eberflus getting the other.

Poles continues working to bolster the roster after cutdowns and waiver pickups. The Bears added a pair of practice squad players who had been with other teams.

They brought both defensive end Andre Anthony and interior offensive lineman Michael Niese.

Anthony is a potential player to watch. Tampa Bay had the 6-foot-3, 255-pound edge rusher after selecting him in the seventh round of this year's draft.

Anthony, a former LSU player who had 10 1/2 career sacks and 11 tackles for loss for 21 games, was figuring as an outside linebacker in the Buccaneers defense but now will be an end. He had three tackles, including two sacks, and made three quarterback hits in preseason before being a victim of cuts with Tampa Bay.

Niese is a 6-5, 295-pound guard who was with Denver but was cut. The former Temple player was undrafted and the Broncos had him because they felt he was a fit for the wide zone running scheme they are using, one similar to the Bears offensive scheme.

To make room for both players on the practice squad, the Bears released offensive lineman Lachavious Simmons from the practice squad and signed defensive tackle Mike Pennel to the active roster. Pennel had been on the practice squad but was brought up as one of the allowed practice squad elevations for the first game. He got in for 14 plays and made one tackle in Sunday's game.

Simmon was a seventh-round Bears draft pick by former GM Ryan Pace in 2020, and made it into two games with one start.

The Bears also lost cornerback Thomas Graham Jr. from the practice squad. Cleveland claimed him off the practice squad. Players on the practice squad are free agents unless protected.

Graham, a sixth-round pick last year by Ryan Pace,  failed to make the 53-man Bears roster two straight seasons under two different regimes and was put on the practice squad both times. He did get onto the 53-man roster last year at season's end after injuries and COVID-19 ravaged the secondary.

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