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INDIANAPOLIS, INDIANA - FEBRUARY 28: Zah Frazier #DB09 of UTSA participates in a drill during the NFL Scouting Combine at Lucas Oil Stadium on February 28, 2025 in Indianapolis, Indiana. (Photo by Stacy Revere/Getty Images)

The Chicago Bears have cut ties with former 2025 fifth-round pick, cornerback Zah Frazier, the team announced.

“The #Bears have waived DB Zah Frazier – @BearsPR”

Frazier never played a single snap for the Bears. He missed the entirety of his rookie season due to personal issues.

“This kid was unbelievable,” Bears director of player personnel Trey Koziol said regarding Frazier. “Really fun. You guys will ge to see it when you get to know him, but outgoing, just really self-aware, a mature kid.”

Well, it looks like we’ll never get to see it, because he’s no longer on the team.

Bears Cut Ties With Former 2025 Fifth-Round Pick Zah Frazier Ahead of 2026 NFL Season

It’s still unclear what the “personal reasons” were for Zah Frazier never suiting up for the Bears. Through his three seasons at UTSA, Frazier appeared in 29 games with 10 starts, totaling 34 tackles, 15 passes defensed, 10 pass breakups, and six interceptions.

“Little bit of a complicated deal; he’s going to go on NFI,” Poles said back in August 2025 when he revealed they were shutting down Frazier for the season. “He had a situation that presented itself in a category that I would say is personal. As we dug into it to try and help him out, it revealed itself as something that happened before he got here. Credit to our staff for finding the root cause of what he was going through. He’ll be down for the year, but he’ll spend the time going to meetings, in the weight room, and with medical staff preparing for next season to get ready to play. Kind of a bummer on the front end, but I think because of everyone’s hard work and care here, we got him on the right path.”

“He needed to play,” Poles later said in January 2026, adding that Frazier had a “mountain to climb” because he missed the entirety of the 2025 season.

It looks like Poles whiffed on this selection, but it’s hard to imagine him knowing that Frazier was dealing with personal issues before drafting him.

There have been sudden changes affecting Poles and the rest of the Bears organization over the past few seasons, with the most notable being Drew Dalman’s sudden retirement.

The good news for the Bears is that they are deep at corner, with the team drafting Texas CB Malik Muhammad in the fourth round and Terell Smith returning from injury.

Malik Muhammad is in the Perfect Spot to Land Key Role in Year 1

Zah Frazier was really never a huge threat to Bears’ 2026 fourth-round pick, Malik Muhammad, but it looks like he’ll have a chance to compete for the starting CB spot opposite Jaylon Johnson, whom he models his game after.

“In a couple of my interviews, if they were to ask me who were some of the corners that I watch in the league, I would mention Jaylon Johnson and be like ‘he’s actually nice.’ I don’t watch a lot of the new age corners. I’m really like an old school corner, but Jaylon Johnson is one of the guys that I mention.”

It’s a weird case with Frazier being cut after never playing a game for the Bears, but it looks like the Bears were preparing for his release with the drafting of Muhammad in the fourth round.