LAKE FOREST, ILLINOIS – SEPTEMBER 01: Tyler Bray #8 of the Chicago Bears throws a pass during training camp at Halas Hall on September 01, 2020 in Lake Forest, Illinois. (Photo by Dylan Buell/Getty Images)
The Chicago Bears made headlines this week when they announced that Nick Foles would be their starting quarterback on Sunday against the Indianapolis Colts, but they turned some heads on Saturday with a roster move, as they signed quarterback Tyler Bray to their active roster.
Bray, who was on the Bears’ practice squad, has only appeared in one NFL game, throwing an incomplete pass for the Kansas City Chiefs during the 2017 season. He has been protected by the Bears multiple times in recent weeks from being signed to another team, but now he’s on their active roster for this Sunday’s game.
Under the terms of a change to the league’s collective bargaining agreement, teams are currently allowed to activate up to two players from their practice squad without releasing another player, allowing them to bump their active roster size from 53 players to 55.
The league has also allowed teams to protect players from being signed off of their practice squad this season, and the Bears used that designation on Bray earlier in the week. That means that the quarterback wasn’t at risk of being signed by another team, but it also leaves it unclear as to why Bray was activated to the team’s active roster ahead of Sunday’s game.
If the Bears provide any clarity on why Bray has been activated, we will update this story with new information.
