After a mysterious year-long absence, the ball-hawking corner’s "off-track" trajectory forced Chicago to cut ties, clearing a path for rookie Malik Muhammad to challenge for a starting role.
There was some breaking Chicago Bears news on Thursday night, just one day before the team held its rookie minicamp.
The franchise announced that it had waived cornerback Zah Frazier.
Frazier was a 2025 NFL Draft pick by General Manager Ryan Poles in the fifth round. He had a very successful season in 2024 at UTSA, where he led the American Conference with six interceptions.
However, he had an interesting short stint with the Bears and didn't see the field. Frazier missed all of last season, not due to an injury, but for what the team described as a personal reason.
Head coach Ben Johnson held a press conference after the first day of rookie minicamp and was asked about Frazier. It felt like he had a good chance of playing this season, and Johnson tried to shed some light on what changed that led to the Bears parting ways with Frazier.
The head coach shared that it had to do with Frazier's trajectory and that it didn't align with what the Bears had hoped for at this point.
"Yeah, we were hopeful and just wasn't going that direction," Johnson said. "The trajectory was off, and so we decided to go a different direction."
The move removes competition from the cornerback room and gives rookie Malik Muhammad a better chance of beating Tyrique Stevenson for the No. 2 CB role.
The No. 1 CB obviously belongs to Jaylon Johnson, and slot corner is going to be Kyler Gordon again if he can stay healthy. However, the other outside corner spot was starting to look crowded.
Stevenson, Muhammad and Frazier were all believed to be in the mix for the job. Now that Frazier is gone, it seems like a two-horse race between Stevenson and Muhammad.
The other reserves behind Stevenson include Jaylon Jones and Dontae Manning, who aren't expected to compete for the job.
Another thing to consider is that this means that an undrafted free agent has a better chance of making the 53-man roster now. The Bears have multiple defensive backs who are attending the rookie minicamp.
Two undrafted free agents to watch at the position are Tulane's K.C. Eziomume and Oregon State's Skyler Thomas. Chicago is also letting UConn defensive back Devin Pringle and EKU defensive back Jaheim Ward try out for the team.
It's unfortunate that Frazier wasn't able to stay with the franchise, but this opens the door for an opportunity for an undrafted free agent to get a good shot at making this team.