You could say the ups and downs the Chicago Bears have gone through the last couple years have aged fans with all the stress that’s come along with rooting for them. This year however, it’s the team itself that is aged compared to the rest of their competition. A dive into the final 53-man rosters by PhillyVoice.com finds the Bears own the oldest roster in the NFL with an average age of 27-years old. Here’s a look at the bottom 5 in terms of age:
28. New England Patriots: 26.5 years old
29. Arizona Cardinals: 26.7 years old
30. Tampa Bay Buccaneers: 26.7 years old
31. Houston Texans: 26.8 years old
32. Chicago Bears: 27 years old
Which NFL teams are the oldest, and the youngest, based on the 53-man rosters around the league?https://t.co/TqrcqCBli9 @JimmyKempski
— PhillyVoice (@thephillyvoice) September 1, 2021
That’s a rather mixed bag of teams considering the Bucs are coming off a Super Bowl victory (and Tom Brady continues to climb into his 40s) yet on the flipside there’s the lowly Texans without much to hang their hats on entering the 2021 season. Nevertheless, this isn’t the first time the Bears have found themselves among the old boys club in the NFL. In 2020, they compiled the 2nd oldest roster and ranked 22nd in age in 2019. As for this year, a quick look at the top paid players on the Bears you’ll find 31-year old Robert Quinn, 30-year old Khalil Mack, 31-year old Akiem Hicks, 34-year old Jimmy Graham and 33-year old Andy Dalton among the top 12 names.
If there’s any positives to look at regarding the aging nature of the Bears’ current roster, it’s that several older vets may be off the roster come 2022, and with releases comes plenty of cap space. The NFL salary cap is projected to increase significantly next year following a bizarre pandemic year that saw the cap actually fall in 2021. Only 31 players are under contract next year for Chicago, meaning we could see some significant overhaul that would include some big moves in free agency if the team expects to contend next year. Without a first round selection in the 2022 Draft thanks to the Justin Fields trade, Ryan Pace has his work cut out for him to keep the team competitive with a QB on a rookie deal.
Make sure to check out our Chicago Bears forum for the latest on the Monsters of the Midway.
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