Eddie Royal Released by Bears After 2 Seasons with Club

The Chicago Bears released wide receiver Eddie Royal on Thursday. 

Royal, 30, spent the past two seasons with the Bears, registering 70 receptions for 607 yards and four total touchdowns.  

He missed 14 games due to injury over those two seasons and averaged just 8.7 yards per catch.

According to Ian Rapoport of NFL Network, Royal was scheduled to make $5 million in the 2017 season, but cutting him left Chicago with no dead cap money. In essence, the Bears made a financial clean break from him.

With Kevin White expected to emerge as the team's top option at wide receiver if he can remain healthy and Cameron Meredith coming off an excellent sophomore season (66 receptions for 888 yards and four touchdowns), the Bears are set at the starting positions. After signing Kendall Wright and Markus Wheaton during free agency, Chicago have strong depth at the position, too. 

Seeing as Royal never played all that well for the Bears, his release became an inevitability this offseason.