It’s a condensed week for the Chicago Bears, which means an earlier-than-usual injury report. And at first glance, it’s a bit of a heart-stopper:
#Bears Monday Injury Report:
DNP: LB Aaron Lynch (concussion); TE Adam Shaheen (concussion); QB Mitchell Trubisky (right shoulder)
*The Bears did not practice Monday; participation reports are estimates— Chicago Bears (@BearsPR) November 20, 2018
Quarterback Mitch Trubisky appears on the injury report with right shoulder injury. The Bears didn’t practice on Monday, so this injury report is a rough estimate of what one would look like on a Wednesday before a normal Sunday game. But had the Bears practiced, Trubisky would have been listed as a non-participant. That’s less than encouraging.
It isn’t clear how Trubisky suffered the injury, but Adam Jahns of the Chicago Sun-Times points out Harrison Smith’s late hit on the Bears quarterback in the fourth quarter as the play that might have caused the problem:
#Bears QB Mitch Trubisky is listed on the injury report with a right shoulder injury. He got up favoring his shoulder Sunday night after getting hit by Vikings safety Harrison Smith, who was penalized for the hit.
— Adam Jahns (@adamjahns) November 20, 2018
Here is a replay of the penalty-drawing hit:
Mitch Trubisky aparece en la lista de lesionados con molestia en el hombro derecho. Nuestro mariscal recibió un fuerte golpe cobarde dado con alevosía y ventaja por el safety Harrison Smith en el último cuarto en el juego de ayer frente a los Vikingos de Minesota.#VamosOsos pic.twitter.com/MG1JnZ2s89
— Osos de Chicago (@Osos_de_Chicago) November 20, 2018
Trubisky finished the game, but popping up on the injury report with a problem with your throwing shoulder isn’t good news for the leaders of the NFC North.
Joining Trubisky on the injury report are edge defender Aaron Lynch and tight end Adam Shaheen. Both players left Sunday night’s win against the Minnesota Vikings with concussions and entered the league’s concussion protocol. Shaheen’s injury is believed to have happened on the play in which he caught the two-point conversion. Prior to being removed from the game, the second-year tight end played 19 snaps (or 25.7%). Lynch, who had been playing well in his role as a situational pass-rusher, played just five snaps in the Bears’ win. Neither would have practiced on Monday, and based on how the Bears have treated concussions this year, it’s difficult to imagine either would be available on Tuesday.
The Bears are expected to practice on Tuesday and both Trubisky and Head Coach Matt Nagy are scheduled to speak, which could provide us some clarity on the quarterback’s playing status for Thursday’s game against the Detroit Lions. Two games ago, Trubisky torched Detroit for 355 passing yards and four total touchdowns. So while he wouldn’t have practiced on Monday, there are still two opportunities for Trubisky to prove his throwing shoulder is healthy enough to allow him to suit up and sling it against the Lions.