Bears re-sign linebacker Nick Roach after career year

Linebacker Nick Roach on Monday signed his one-year, $1.684 million tender offer from the Bears.

Had Roach, a restricted free agent, received an offer sheet from another team that the Bears chose not to match, they would have received a second-round pick from that team as compensation. Roach, who signed an agreement that protected him in the event of an injury, has been participating in the Bears' voluntary off-season workouts.

He began last season as a backup but started 15 games after linebackers Brian Urlacher and Pisa Tinoisamoa suffered season-ending injuries. He had a career-best 82 tackles and tied for the team lead with 10 tackles for loss.

Twelve of Roach's starts were at strong-side linebacker, where he is expected to compete with Tinoisamoa this year for the starting job. The 6-foot-1, 234-pound Roach has 24 NFL starts, even though he went undrafted out of Northwestern in 2007 and was signed off the Chargers' practice squad by the Bears on Nov. 21, 2007.

Roach and Josh Bullocks are the only Bears restricted free agents who have signed their tender offers, leaving Danieal Manning, Mark Anderson and Jamar Williams unsigned, although they have until June 15.

Those players can no longer receive offer sheets from other teams, though, as that deadline passed April 15.

Anderson has been participating in the off-season workouts, which started March 29, and Manning joined his teammates Monday for the first time.