A former Super Bowl hero is about to find himself on the open market. Tracy Porter, who you may remember for his game-sealing pick-six against Peyton Manning back in Super Bowl XLIV, was released by the Bears on Monday.
The team announced the move via its official Twitter account.
Porter played two seasons with the Bears, but lasted only one year after signing a three-year, $12 million contract during the 2016 offseason. His release saves the Bears a little more than $3.4 million against the cap this season.
The writing was perhaps on the wall for Porter, who struggled with injuries throughout much of the 2016 campaign, when the Bears signed corners Prince Amukamara and Marcus Cooper earlier this offseason. That duo, along with Bryce Callahan and Kyle Fuller, appear to be in line for most of the snaps at the position this coming season, though the Bears may also be in the mix for another defensive back as early as Round 1 in this month’s NFL Draft.
Still just 30 years old, Porter seems likely to find work elsewhere before the offseason is up. He has enough of a track record to make it worth it for a team to give him another shot, especially when you consider that he did play through injury during his down 2016 season.