Last we saw Danny Trevathan, he was picking off a Titans pass and dunking on the Takeaway Bucket.
And for this instant, any concerns about the 31-year-old’s health and status on the season-opening roster were washed away.
Until they weren’t:
Nothing official yet but the word circulating right now is the #Bears are placing ILB Danny Trevathan will be placed on short-term injured reserve. That adds some context to the team keeping seven inside linebackers on the 53-man roster through Tuesday's cuts.
— Brad Biggs (@BradBiggs) September 1, 2021
The Chicago Tribune’s Brad Biggs reports Trevathan will begin the year on injured reserve. And all of a sudden, it makes sense as to why the Bears were hoarding inside linebackers on their initial 53-player roster. With Trevathan out of action, even on a short-term basis, Chicago would’ve been on the prowl in search of linebacker help ahead of the season opener. Instead, the team can roll with Alec Ogletree starting next to Roquan Smith, and have Christian Jones, Joel Iyiegbuniwe, Josh Woods, and Caleb Johnson holding it down among the reserves.
Trevathan did miss time at the outset of training camp with a knee issue. And even though Trevathan was a starter in the preseason finale, the Bears still came away feeling like an IR stint to start the year was the right move. Once official, Trevathan will miss a minimum of three weeks. In that time, I imagine the Bears will evaluate Jones, Iyiegbuniwe, Woods, and Johnson to see who is worth holding onto whenever Trevathan is healthy enough to return. Ultimately, we’re looking at a decision that pits veterans (Ogletree, Jones) against home-grown young players (Iyiegbuniwe, Woods) and a wild-card (Johnson).
In the meantime, Trevathan’s slide onto IR is one move that could open up a roster spot. And that’s good, because the Bears need three with the additions of Breshad Perriman, Nsimba Webster, and the return of Artie Burns. More on the roster moves to come as details surface.