NEWSLETTER
Reinforcements are on their way to help the first-place Chicago Bears maintain a hold of their lead on the NFC North:
#Bears Wednesday Injury Report:
DNP: Sims (concussion)
Limited: Gabriel (knee)
Full: Braunecker (concussion), Kush (neck), Mack (ankle), Nichols (knee), Robinson II (groin).— Chicago Bears (@BearsPR) November 7, 2018
Pass-rusher Khalil Mack, wide receiver Allen Robinson II, defensive lineman Bilal Nichols, guard Eric Kush, and tight end Ben Braunecker were full participants in Wednesday’s practice …which is FREAKIN’ AWESOME.
This marks the first time Mack and Robinson were listed as full-time practice players since before their respective injuries. Nichols was briefly limited in practice prior to the team’s Week 9 matchup against the Bills, but was downgraded and did not practice for most of last week. Braunecker spent the week leading up to the Buffalo game in concussion protocol, which kept him off the practice field altogether.
In Mack, Robinson, Kush, and Nichols, the Bears could welcome as many as four starters back into the lineup. Sure, the Bears held their own by coming through with a pair of double-digit wins against a pair of bottom-feeding AFC East teams, but it’s still a great sign to see the team get that much closer to being fully loaded with healthy talent. On the other side of the ball, I can’t imagine Lions quarterback Matthew Stafford is looking at this updated injury report too fondly after taking 10 sacks against the Vikings in Week 9.
But it isn’t all great news: Wide receiver Taylor Gabriel was limited because of a knee injury. If you recall, Gabriel played 44 offensive snaps (or 86.3%) on Sunday, but didn’t finish the game because of a re-aggravated injury suffered in the waning moments. The speedy receiver has since said he’ll be ready to play against the Lions in Week 10, but that’s not going to stop the Bears from playing it safe with one of Mitch Trubisky’s favorite targets.
Tight end Dion Sims, meanwhile, was held out of practice as he dealt with concussion issues. Sims played just 14 offensive snaps (in addition to five special teams plays) before leaving the win against Buffalo with a concussion.
Not listed on the injury report as having practiced is tight end Adam Shaheen, who is recovering from a foot/ankle injury that dates back to the preseason. Head Coach Matt Nagy expressed his belief that Shaheen would practice in some capacity as early as today. But we’ll see how the Bears approach handling him moving forward.
