The Chicago Bears released safety Anthony Walters on Thursday, the team announced.
Walters appeared in four games last season for the Bears after being signed on November 29. He played in 37 games in Chicago from 2011-14, contributing primarily on special teams. Walters made 10 special teams tackles in 2012 and 2013.
The 6-foot-1 safety started one game for the Bears in the 2012 season.
The Bears are in the midst of overhauling safety after years of failing to find a long-term solution at the position. The club signed veteran Antrel Rolle to a three year contract in the opening days of free agency after deciding to move on without former starter Chris Conte, who eventually landed in Tampa Bay with ex-Bears head coach Lovie Smith.
Rolle and holdover Ryan Mundy are tentatively slated to be the starters, but the Bears are expected to increase their depth at safety in the coming months.
The team invested a 2014 fifth-round pick in Brock Vereen, but although Vereen gained valuable experience as a rookie (five starts, 38 tackles, one interception and eight special teams stops), the former Minnesota Golden Gopher doesn’t seem to fit the aggressive, hard-hitting mold that new defensive coordinator Vic Fangio and secondary coach Ed Donatell are known to prefer in safeties.
Mundy did a respectable job his first year in Chicago in 2014, finishing second on the team in tackles (108), and tied for the team-lead with four interceptions. However, Mundy is only signed through 2015, meaning the Bears must continue to keep an eye toward the future.
