Chicago rookie Kiran Amegadjie suffered one of the more serious injuries during the 18-15 loss to Washington, while Teven Jenkins’ condition is less severe. The injuries to the Bears’ offensive line, particularly at tackle, turned out to be worse than anticipated.
The Bears did not hold a practice on Wednesday and instead had a walk-through to prepare for the upcoming game against the Cardinals. Coach Matt Eberflus acknowledged that the O-line situation contributed to this decision.
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Amegadjie, who replaced Braxton Jones after he injured his knee, sustained a calf injury during the game and would not have been able to practice if there had been one.
“It doesn’t look like he’s going to be able to get back, referring to Kiran,” Eberflus said. “As for Braxton Jones, he’s working through his knee issue, and we’ll see how that develops.”
On a more positive note, both Teven Jenkins (knee) and Ryan Bates would have been limited in practice. The Bears are contemplating activating Bates from injured reserve, as he has been sidelined since suffering a shoulder injury in the season opener.
Tackle Larry Borom (ankle) is also on injured reserve but could be reinstated, having participated in a full practice.
Neither safety Jaquan Brisker (concussion) nor slot cornerback Kyler Gordon (hamstring) would have been able to practice yet. Brisker has been out since the game against Carolina before the Bears’ London trip, while Gordon missed last week’s game.
Another significant injury concern is defensive end Montez Sweat, who left the last game with a shin issue and also would have been unable to practice.
“He’s dealing with the shin injury and is working through it; we’re hopeful for him,” Eberflus said. “We’ll see how it progresses.”
The offensive line situation could change significantly by the end of the week. The team prefers to use players who have already played rather than those on IR.
“We’ll stick with the guys who have been in there,” Eberflus stated. “They’ve performed well. We did a good job running the ball if they are all available. We’ll see how it goes. I don’t have all the answers right now, but the O-line and the offensive staff have done a solid job cross-training players, allowing us to adapt as needed.”
