After inviting nearly 70 players to their rookie minicamp, the Bears have added six more players to the roster. Each of the following players signed with the team after impressing Ryan Poles and Matt Eberflus during their tryouts:
CHRISTIAN ALBRIGHT - LINEBACKER
Albright started 48 consecutive games for Ball State, which was the most among all their active players. In all, he appeared in 57 games, playing defensive end and outside linebacker. Over that time he recorded 257 tackles, 15 sacks, nine forced fumbles and two interceptions.
JON ALEXANDER - DEFENSIVE BACK
Alexander spent the first two years of his college career at Garden City Community College and Kilgore College (Texas) before transferring to Kansas State in 2019. He sat out the 2020 season, then transferred to Charlotte last year. In 2021, he played nine games, registering 57 tackles, two forced fumbles and two interceptions. He returned one of those interceptions for a touchdown.
ANTONIO ORTIZ - LONG SNAPPER
Ortiz started all 44 games of his college career at long snapper for the TCU Horned Frogs. He was recognized with First-Team Academic All-Big 12 honors in 2019, 2020 and 2021, and was a Patrick Mannelly Award Semifinalist last season, as well.
NFL
CARSON TAYLOR - DEFENSIVE END
Since 2017, Taylor had 19 sacks for the Northern Arizona Lumberjacks. He had a career-high six sacks in 2021. Taylor also forced six fumbles in his career at NAU.
A.J. THOMAS - DEFENSIVE BACK
Thomas was a versatile defensive player at Western Michigan. He started as a cornerback in 2017 and 2018, then moved to safety for the 2019 and 2020 seasons. Last year, the Broncos listed Thomas as a linebacker. Over his career he registered 221 tackles and 14 passes defended, with two interceptions and two fumble recoveries.
DE’MONTRE TUGGLE - RUNNING BACK
Tuggle was the leading rusher for the Ohio Bobcats in 2020 and 2021, racking up 1,207 yards and 13 touchdowns over 15 games. Tuggle also contributed in the passing game, catching 18 passes for 162 yards and two touchdowns over the same period of time.