LAKE FOREST, Ill. — Chicago Bears general manager Ryan Poles addressed the media after the team finalized its 53-man roster Tuesday afternoon at Halas Hall.

This day, as it is every year, is a tough one for higher-ups in NFL organizations and for the players. Some NFL dreams will come to an end, while others will continue their respective journeys in the league.

Poles mentioned this cutdown process was difficult, given the competitiveness that head coach Ben Johnson instilled throughout training camp. Now, Poles and his staff will focus on scavenging the waiver wire to continue upgrading the team however they see fit.

Poles answered questions for just over 15 minutes Tuesday.

Here are the top four takeaways from his press conference.

O-line status

The Bears kept 10 offensive linemen, and Poles feels “really good about that position now.” That also includes the left tackle situation.

Poles mentioned there would be some projection with the players competing at left tackle, with Braxton Jones coming back from injury, rookie Ozzy Trapilo moving from right to left tackle (though he has since been moved back to the right side), and Theo Benedet continuing his development.

The Bears’ GM felt “they all got better” over time. The players in that room also offer versatility to play both tackle spots with the depth on the roster.

“So you want to make sure you have insurance that guys can play and they can play multiple positions when you’re dressing eight guys for a game,” Poles said. “So, we should be in pretty good shape.”

Poles also revealed that offensive tackle Kiran Amegadjie, a 2024 third-round draft pick, has started to practice at guard.

“He actually looked pretty good,” Poles said. “So we’ll continue to work on his versatility. We know he can do some left and right, but playing inside is going to be big too.”

Jaylon Johnson update

The Bears are 13 days away from hosting the Minnesota Vikings on “Monday Night Football,” and veteran cornerback Jaylon Johnson has been sidelined throughout all of training camp with a soft tissue injury.

Poles explained Johnson “had a pretty good soft tissue injury” before he arrived at Halas Hall for report day in mid-July. The Bears have taken a daily approach with Johnson as he works back, but there has been gradual progress.

“When I was going out to practice, he was running and doing agility work, so I feel like he’s getting better,” Poles said. “When you’re going from not playing and just training to football, there’s all kinds of different things that kind of change timelines, so we’re hopeful that he continues to get better, but we also have to be smart to make sure he’s good long-term as well.”

Johnson’s conditioning also is something to monitor, and the team is evaluating it. When Poles was asked if the All-Pro cornerback would be ready for Week 1, he said, “We’re pushing for it, but it’s that fine line of making sure that we’re smart with it.”

Caleb Williams’ progress

The plan always was to overload quarterback Caleb Williams with lots of information and see how much he could handle. Throughout training camp, the second-year pro has had his ups and downs.

But that hasn’t discouraged Poles in the slightest.

“I know when I put the whole timeline together, starting from when he walked on campus from last year to this year, there’s been a ton of growth there,” Poles said. “And I notice when you get into game weeks and dial in, that speed of playing and being efficient should increase as we go.”

Poles believes all the information Williams was given about the playbook should benefit his development. As the team prepares for weekly matchups, that playbook will become condensed, allowing Williams and the rest of the offense to focus solely on the opponent for that week.

Running back health

D’Andre Swift was the only healthy running back in Tuesday’s practice. That’s not typically seen on an NFL practice field, but Poles highlighted that should change as veteran Roschon Johnson and rookie Kyle Monangai recover from injuries.

“Their timelines, I feel good about their timelines,” Poles said. “Kyle’s coming along. Like I said, over the next few days, you’ll probably see the practice field look a little different. I’ve got a lot of faith those guys will be ready to go. If they’re not, we’ll still look out and see if there’s guys that can help us. Like I said, with Ben’s creativity, who knows who will be lined up back there.”

DJ Moore has taken snaps in the backfield in these latest practices, so that could be a wrinkle that Johnson adds. Swift will be the team’s featured running back, and although it’s a small sample size, Poles enjoyed what he saw from the elusive runner.

“I thought he was very decisive in getting downhill, getting positive gains,” Poles said. “There wasn’t as much dancing with negative rushes, which is going to be big for us to stay on par with the chains and stay with positive gains there. I feel like there’s been improvement, which, a lot of credit to EB (running backs coach Eric Bieniemy). You don’t have too much room other than to do the right thing with EB, so he’s going to keep working with those guys to get better.”

One running back who won’t be available to start the season is Travis Homer, who was placed on IR (designated to return) and will miss at least the first four weeks of the season.