A former NFL draft bust for the Chicago Bears has seen his career take another unfortunate turn as he prepares for his fourth season in the league in 2026.
According to the team’s official transaction wire, the Kansas City Chiefs signed a trio of rookies to their 90-man offseason roster on Monday, May 4, following their two-day rookie minicamp over the weekend. To clear the necessary roster space, they also cut loose former Bears defensive tackle Zacch Pickens, a 2023 third-round selection.
The Bears had selected Pickens with the first pick in the third round of the 2023 draft, hoping that he and second-round pick Gervon Dexter Sr. could develop into productive players for their defensive interior. While Dexter became a quality starter, Pickens only made a minimal impact in 28 games over his first two years and missed the 2025 roster.
Pickens spent the 2025 season with the Chiefs after the Bears waived him during their initial 53-man roster cutdown. He spent most of the season as a practice-squad player, but he earned his first elevation opportunity in December before joining the 53-man roster for their final two games. He tallied five total tackles in his 59 defensive snaps.
Now, Pickens will return to free agency — if he clears waivers — in hopes of finding a new team to offer him a chance to compete, ideally before teams begin their OTAs.
Bears Unlikely to Offer Zacch Pickens Another Chance
GettyFormer Bears third-round pick and defensive tackle Zacch Pickens.
Pickens could appeal to teams seeking more competition for their defensive interiors. He has below-average production (44 tackles, two tackles for loss, four quarterback hits) over his 551 career defensive snaps, but he has good size, length and athleticism and enough experience to make things interesting for bottom-roster battles in camp.
The Bears, however, are unlikely to call up Pickens about a potential reunion in 2026.
Pickens has already had his sink-or-swim moment with the Bears. He was squarely on the roster bubble coming into his third training camp in 2025 after falling behind Chris Williams and Jonathan Ford in the rotation to finish the 2024 season, but the arrivals of Ben Johnson and defensive coordinator Dennis Allen seemed to wipe his slate clean.
Unfortunately for him, Pickens did little to help his roster case. He tallied one sack and five tackles in three preseason games, but he remained the odd man out in a group that returned Dexter, Williams and veteran Andrew Billings and added former two-time Pro Bowler Grady Jarrett and 2025 second-round pick Shemar Turner in the offseason.
By camp’s end, the Bears had decided that Pickens’ time had run its course and waived their former third-round pick after just two seasons. He was not the only 2023 draft bust to lose his spot with the team heading into the 2025 season, either — as the Bears also cut ties with former fifth-round pick Tyler Scott in favor of UDFA Jahdae Walker.
Do Bears Have Enough Competition at Defensive Tackle?
The Bears would not likely consider Pickens for their 2026 roster anyway, but it is unclear if they have any plans to further bolster their defensive interior before camp.
The Bears went against expectations and didn’t make any additions to their defensive line on the first two days of the 2026 draft last month, but they did package both of their seventh-round picks (Nos. 239 and 241) in a trade with Buffalo to move up into the sixth round and select Georgia Tech’s Jordan van den Berg at No. 213 overall.
According to ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler, the Bears saw van den Berg as “one of the more gifted defensive tackles in the draft” and “believe they’re getting a steal” with him. He added his “sense” is they have bigger plans for him than a “typical sixth-round flier.”
Given Fowler’s intel, it is reasonable to think that the Bears might be content to see how things play out in training camp with their current interior personnel. They return both Jarrett and Dexter from last season and signed Neville Gallimore and Kentavius Street in free agency to help replace the departures of Billings and Williams from last season.
Those five could be the group, assuming van den Berg looks the part in OTAs and camp.
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