There was a spec of hope that Roquan Smith and Darnell Mooney would play on Sunday against the Saints after being listed as questionable on the week’s final injury report.
As it turns out, there’s no “questionable” about it:
#Bears roster moves / injury update:
We have activated DB Marqui Christian and LB Manti Te’o from the practice squad.We also have downgraded WR Darnell Mooney and LB Roquan Smith to ‘out’ for tomorrow’s Wild Card playoff game at the Saints.
— Chicago Bears (@BearsPR) January 9, 2021
Smith and Mooney were ruled OUT of Sunday’s playoff game against the Saints. Both players were injured in last weekend loss to the Packers. Smith suffered an elbow injury early in the game, while Mooney went down with an ankle in the second half. No need to get overly wordy with my analysis here. Losing two starters this late in the game stinks.
In their place, the Bears are calling up a pair of players from their practice squad. Manti Te’o joins the linebackers room, while Christian gets added to the secondary. With Josh Woods and Joel Iyiegbuniwe moving up the depth chart, then it makes sense to add Te’o as reinforcements. Bringing in Christian is an interesting add. The Bears could try to make up for Smith’s absence by using an extra DB in coverage. Or he could be insurance in case Jaylon Johnson is limited.
No matter how it’s sliced, the Bears enter game day as huge underdogs and short-handed. They certainly have their work cut out for them against the Saints.