Examining the roster ties between Patriots, Bears ahead of Week 10

When the New England Patriots head to Soldier Field, familiar faces will be there to greet them.

A handful of players who previously resided in Foxborough now reside between the active roster, practice squad and injured reserve of the Chicago Bears . And there was a connection on the other side of Sunday, too, until offensive lineman Zachary Thomas was waived from the 53 this week.

Here's a glance through the remaining list leading up to the 1 p.m. ET kickoff.

DeAndre Carter, wide receiver — The former FCS All-American out of Sacramento State made stops with the Baltimore Ravens and Oakland Raiders before signing to head coach Bill Belichick's practice squad as an undrafted rookie in December 2015. From there, Carter would be released, re-signed and retained on a futures contract. A preseason touchdown catch followed. The 31-year-old has since toured the league and is in his second stint with Chicago after reaching a one-year deal in June. Through 102 career games, he stands with 1,326 receiving yards, 99 rushing yards and six touchdowns on offense. An additional visit to the end zone has come on special teams, where his journey includes 1,409 yards on punt returns and 2,931 yards on kickoff returns.

Bill Murray, guard — Murray entered the NFL with the Patriots as an undrafted free agent in 2020. And after three campaigns on the practice squad, where he moved from the defensive line to the offensive line, the William & Mary product moved on following the 53-man roster deadline in 2023. Murray had twice served as a standard elevation by then, including versus Chicago. He signed to the practice squad last fall and would go on to make the active roster out of training camp this fall. The Bears placed the 27-year-old on injured reserve at the end of October due to a pectoral injury. Prior to then, Murray saw action in three games while seeing the initial 42 offensive snaps of his career.

Byron Cowart, defensive tackle — The 28-year-old Cowart agreed to terms with the Bears in March and climbed from the practice squad to the active roster in October. He has checked into six games, recording six tackles and splitting a sack. The defensive tackle by way of Auburn and Maryland was selected by the Patriots in the fifth round of the 2019 draft at No. 159 overall. Cowart went on to appear 19 games while in Foxborough, starting 14, en route to 29 tackles as well as one sack and one pass deflection. After spending 2021 on the physically unable to perform list, Cowart was claimed off waivers by the Indianapolis Colts. Subsequent contracts were signed with the Kansas City Chiefs, Houston Texans and Miami Dolphins.

Jamree Kromah, defensive end — Now back on the practice squad of the Bears, Kromah had agreed to depart for a spot on the 53-man roster of the Patriots in September. After three weeks among the team's inactives — the minimum requirement for his stay under league rules — the rookie was waived in October. A former transfer from Rutgers to James Madison, Kromah totaled 60 tackles, 11 sacks, one forced fumble and one fumble recovery as a redshirt senior with the Dukes in 2023 before going undrafted in April. The 24-year-old defensive end was selected by the San Antonio Brahmas in the fifth round the UFL draft in July.