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Who wins the Bears' roster battles? Projecting the 53 players who make the team

Ashlee Rezin/Sun-Times

General manager Ryan Poles vowed that this year’s Bears roster will be hard to make.

He’s right.

As the Bears enter their first game week of the preseason — they play the Texans in the Hall of Fame Game on Thursday — there are scant starting spots up for grabs. The jobs at the end of the roster are harder to land than at any point during the Poles era, too.

Through seven practices, here’s our projection for the Bears’ 53-man roster:

OFFENSE (25 keeepers/44 players)

Quarterbacks (2/4)

They’re keeping: Caleb Williams, Tyson Bagent

On the bubble: Brett Rypien, Austin Reed

What we’ve learned: The Bears wanted Williams to increase his mastery of the playbook, cadence and footwork in the break before camp started, and were pleased with his growth upon his return.