For the most part, the Chicago Bears avoided any huge surprises with their trimming down of the roster from 80 players to 53. However, fans were a bit perplexed during the final hours when it was revealed the team would be releasing third-year cornerback Kevin Toliver. A move nobody saw happening when training camp opened back in late July.
It isn’t like he was a star in the making. Toliver was a backup the past two seasons for the Bears after going undrafted in 2018. Still, it seemed like he made strides late in 2019 when replacing an injured Prince Amukamara. Now with Amukamara released back in March, most felt he was penciled in as the starter opposite Kyle Fuller.
To go from that to cut in the space of one training camp is pretty wild. Yet the intrigue didn’t quite end there. Brad Biggs of the Chicago Tribune revealed the Bears weren’t actually done with Toliver but circumstances got in the way.
“The Bears hoped to re-sign Toliver to the practice squad, but he chose to sign on with the Denver Broncos practice squad, reuniting him with former Bears defensive coordinator Vic Fangio. My instincts tell me the Broncos probably sweetened the deal for Toliver and agreed to pay him above the minimum for practice squad players.”
Kevin Toliver fall is a testament to Bears’ draft picks
Toliver’s status changed fast. By the sound of things, it appears the word the Bears did in the recent draft was a huge factor in his fall. This due to the arrival of 2nd round pick Jaylon Johnson and 5th round pick Kindle Vildor. Johnson competed with him for the starting job and won outright. Yet it was likely the rise of Vidor, who performed well in camp, that convinced the coaches Toliver was no longer needed.
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Keeping him on the practice squad would’ve made sense. He’s still a talented young player who knew the system. Yet a big reason he signed with the Bears two years ago was to play under Vic Fangio. A chance to do that again plus make a little extra money? It makes perfect sense. It will be interesting to see how things play out for the Bears secondary this year.
