Bears cut WR Ihmir Smith-Marsette, who fumbled at end of game vs. Vikings

Coach Matt Eberflus said Friday that the Bears would examine changes to their starting lineup, roster and strategy during a long weekend without a game. Receiver Ihmir Smith-Marsette was the first — and maybe last — roster casualty.

Smith-Marsette, whose two penalties against the Vikings helped to scuttle the Bears’ comeback, was cut Tuesday. The Bears promoted receiver Isaiah Coulter from the practice squad to take his place and filled their practice-squad opening with tight end Sammis Reyes.

The Bears claimed Smith-Marsette at the start of the regular season after he was cut by the Vikings, who drafted him in the fifth round in 2021. Playing against his former team in Week 5, Smith-Marsette caught a pass from Justin Fields at the Vikings’ 39-yard line with the Bears trailing by a touchdown. Rather than step out of bounds, he fought for more yards and was stripped by cornerback Cameron Dantzler to seal the loss with about a minute left.

‘‘I tried to do too much on my end,’’ Smith-Marsette said at the time. ‘‘I’ve just got to be smarter.’’

Earlier in the fourth quarter, he was called for an illegal-block-in-the-back penalty on what would have been a 52-yard touchdown run by Fields. It would have given the Bears the lead.

In four games with the Bears, Smith-Marsette logged one catch for 15 yards — the play on which he fumbled.

Reyes played in 11 games for the Commanders last season, primarily on special teams. He was the first Chile-born player to appear in an NFL game. A basketball player by trade, he didn’t play football growing up or in college.

Velus returns?

Eberflus wouldn’t commit when he was asked whether rookie Velus Jones would be allowed to continue returning punts.

‘‘We’ll see when we get to Thursday practice,’’ he said.

Jones muffed punts late in the fourth quarter of two of the Bears’ three most recent losses — with about two minutes left against the Giants and about eight minutes left against the Commanders. Such mistakes typically lead to a benching, even in a season in which the Bears are trying to develop their young players.

This and that

After blitzing once in the first two weeks of the season, the Bears have brought an extra rusher 25 times in the last four weeks. Eberflus said blitzes need to be ‘‘hard and fast’’ on the rare occasion they’re called. The Bears are still last in the NFL in blitz percentage.

‘‘When you blitz, you’ve gotta do it the right way,’’ he said. ‘‘You’re changing your coverages every single time sometimes, but you’re always adjusting your coverages behind that pressure. So I think where the answers are [is] always different for the quarterbacks. I think those are two things that I would say are important in blitzing.’’

• Eberflus began his news conference by wishing a happy birthday to former Bears coach Mike Ditka, who turned 83 on Tuesday.

The Bears’ social-media accounts wished a happy birthday to former defensive tackle Steve McMichael on Monday. McMichael, who is battling amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), turned 65.