March 07--The Chicago Bears are not expected to tender an offer to kickoff returner Deonte Thompson but the restricted free agent could still potentially return in free agency.
Thompson energized the return game when he was promoted to the 53-man roster in November and finished second in the NFL with an average of 29.2 yards, trailing only Cordarrelle Patterson of the Vikings (31.2).
The low level tender for restricted free agents is $1.671 million and by not tendering the speedster at that level, it shows the Bears don't place that high of a value on the 27-year-old journeyman. If not, Thompson becomes an unrestricted free agent at 3 p.m. Wednesday when he could re-sign with the Bears for a lower amount. Of course, he could sign with 31 other teams at that point too.
Thompson had a 74-yard return against the 49ers on Dec. 6 and added an element of speed to the field the Bears had been lacking. They signed Thompson to the practice squad on Sept. 22 but took their time promoting him to the 53-man roster as the return game struggled.
His average of 29.2 was the highest for the Bears since Devin Hester averaged 35.6 yards in 2010. Thompson also caught two passes for 81 yards.
If the Bears re-sign Thompson and upgrade the special teams unit as a whole, they could be more productive in the return game in 2016. The Tribune reported last Thursday that the team has tendered an offer to exclusive rights free agent Josh Bellamy and the wide receiver was one of the core special teams players last season.
