Bears injuries have made a former Packers linebacker a necessity
The Green Bay Packers dinged up a couple of Chicago Bears linebackers in their Week 2 win. The Bears added linebackers Matthew Adams and Roquan Smith to the injury report following the Packers-Bears game last Sunday. Adams has been ruled out; Smith is questionable for Week 3. The Bears elevated a former Packers linebacker to fill the depth issues the Bears have at linebacker.
Linebacker Joe Thomas was elevated Saturday to the Bears’ active roster, per the Bears’ statement released on Twitter.
#Bears roster move:
We have elevated LB Joe Thomas from the Practice Squad to the Active Roster.
— Bears Communications (@BearsPR) September 24, 2022
The Packers signed Joe Thomas as an undrafted rookie free agent in 2014. He remained on the team’s practice squad for that season. After a brief stint with the Dallas Cowboys in 2015, Thomas returned to the Packers and played in Green Bay for the 2015-17 regular seasons. He played in 42 games for the Packers. Eight of those were starts. Thomas registered 110 combined tackles, eight tackles for loss, and one interception during his time with the Packers.
Thomas then signed with the Cowboys for the 2018 season. A few years and teams later, he’s with the Packers’ divisional rival, the Bears. Thomas has found a way to have an incredibly successful career as an undrafted player. The former Packers linebacker earned the trust of the Bears coaching staff to be on the team’s active roster for their week 3 contest against the Houston Texans.