Bears Add Salvon Ahmed and Roschon Johnson’s Roster Spot Looks Less Safe

Many were excited about the addition of Roschon Johnson when the Bears drafted him in the fourth round of the 2023 NFL Draft. He was a former five-star recruit at the University of Texas who entered the league with fresh legs after sitting behind Bijan Robinson during his time with the Longhorns.

Unfortunately, it didn’t take long for that excitement to wear off. The brief flashes were few and far between as a rookie, and his touches were scaled back in 2024 (and so was his efficiency). Those limited opportunities were all but eliminated last season, when he carried the ball just two times for 17 yards.

Johnson is entering the final year of his rookie contract with only 138 career attempts for 519 yards. He went from looking primed for an eight-year career as a workman-type back to potentially being on the outs before his rookie contract was complete.

RoJo’s chances of contributing on the offensive side of the ball for Chicago next season were always slim at best with him firmly being behind D’Andre Swift and Kyle Monangai on the depth chart. The latter actually proved to be everything Johnson’s fans thought he would become.

With that said, the Bears didn’t make any major (or even marginal) additions to the running back room this offseason. In fact, the loss of Travis Homer was probably a significant net-positive when it came to his roster security, as his role on special teams expanded with Homer missing time last season.

His main competition for the third running back job seemed like it was going to be Brittain Brown, who spent most of last season on the Bears’ practice squad, and Coleman Bennett, whom they signed as an undrafted free agent out of Kennesaw State after the draft. Not exactly a murderer’s row.

However, the addition of Salvon Ahmed, whom the team signed to a one-year deal yesterday, could put the last nail in his coffin.

Ahmed’s versatility could be key to sticking around

Ahmed might not move the needle much on offense. In fact, barring a disaster, I don’t think he’ll get any offensive touches. His most recent regular-season action came in 2023, and his career stat line is actually just slightly better than Johnson’s (with one more season of action under his belt).

However, the 27-year-old took on more of a role on special teams in his most recent season, playing a third of Miami’s special teams snaps in 2023. Unfortunately, he hasn’t been able to reprise that role over the past two years. He bounced around practice squads in 2024 and was lost before the start of last season after suffering a severe ankle injury in practice as a member of the Colts.

While Johnson’s role on special teams also recently expanded, that was more out of necessity with Homer going down than anything else. He’s never been a standout in that regard, and that includes the increased exposure there last season.

The Bears usually keep four running backs on their final roster. Both Ahmed and Johnson could potentially stick around in that case (unless they have plans to heavily utilize Zavion Thomas in a gadget role, in which case they might feel like they can get by with three backs). However, Ben Johnson probably won’t want to keep two backs whose sole impact will come on special teams.

I don’t think there’s room for both Johnson and Ahmed on the roster if that rings true. The job will belong to whoever performs better in the third phase. It’ll be another interesting position battle to keep an eye on in OTAs.