Mack and Jackson are both in question for the upcoming game against the Steelers.
The Bears began practicing for the Steelers game without two of their best defensive players. Outside linebacker Khalil Mack and safety Eddie Jackson were out with injuries and there is significant concern that they could miss the game Monday.
Mack has been dealing with a sprained foot since Sept. 26 and it finally forced him to miss a game last week.
Bears coach Matt Nagy initially said it was possible they would put him on injured reserve, which requires a player to miss a minimum of three games, but they decided that wasn’t necessary because of the upcoming bye week.
Mack leads the team with six sacks, followed by fellow outside linebacker Robert Quinn with 5.5. The Bears relied mainly on second-year player Trevis Gipson in Mack’s place last week.
Jackson hurt his hamstring in coverage on the second play against the 49ers on Sunday and did not return. While he has struggled this season, particularly with tackling, he is still one of the Bears’ best turnover threats.
The team also missed starting inside linebacker Alec Ogletree (ankle), tight end J.P. Holtz (concussion) and running back Damien Williams (knee).
Nagy said the team is keeping safety Deon Bush (quad) on IR for at least one more game, offensive tackle Teven Jenkins will remain on the physically unable to perform list and offensive lineman Germain Ifedi is still on the reserve/COVID-19 list.
Ifedi is the only player still on the list after several players, coaches and staff tested positive recently.
The Bears had one unexpected absence from practice Thursday: third-string quarterback Nick Foles.
Foles has been inactive for all but two games and has yet to play a snap behind Justin Fields and backup Andy Dalton. Nagy gave no word on him missing practice, but it’s worth noting that Foles made clear in the preseason he hoped to be traded and that didn’t happen by the deadline Tuesday.
The Bears traded a fourth-round pick for Foles last year and agreed to a three-year, $24 million contract that is essentially fully guaranteed. He took over for Mitch Trubisky in Week 3 last season, then the Bears benched him to go back to Trubisky late in the season.
from Chicago Sun-Times - All https://ift.tt/3bFQcGG
No comments:
Post a Comment