Bears cutting former Raiders 1st-round pick Alex Leatherwood
Bears guard Alex Leatherwood talks to his teammates Saturday.
Ashlee Rezin/Sun-Times
One year after taking a chance of former first-round pick Alex Leatherwood, the Bears are cutting him, a source confirmed Sunday night.
The guard won’t be part of the Bears’ 53-man roster, but he’ll live on in the Bears’ salary cap ledger. The Bears will carry a $4.59 million dead cap charge this season, the result of the four-year, fully guaranteed deal afforded him by virtue of being a first-round pick.
The Raiders waived Leatherwood on cut day last year, letting the former Alabama standout go after just one full season and two training camps. The Bears inherited his contract when they claimed him off waivers.
Leatherwood didn’t help one of the league’s worst offensive lines last year, playing only 32 snaps off the bench over four games. The Bears used him this preseason as a backup guard but he was behind former seventh-round pick Ja’Tyre Carter in the pecking order.