The rule of thumb for me when it comes to the Chicago Bears injury report is that the Friday update will be the most informative. At least in terms of figuring out who will be active on game day. But that doesn’t mean we should just overlook the Thursday update. In fact, today’s installment of the injury report delivers a bit of good news.
Cornerback Jaylon Johnson was upgraded from limited to full participation on Thursday’s Bears injury report. So if you were looking for a sign that Johnson would be ready to go for his return, this is it. Seeing “FULL” next to Jaylon’s name on the participation report is an encouraging sign. Sure, Johnson said with confidence that he would be back in time for the Bears’ Week 6 game against the Minnesota Vikings. Still, seeing good news and signs of progress on the injury report represents a wonderful development. Johnson has been out with a hamstring injury that took him out of action in Week 2 and caused him to miss each of the last three games.
As for the rest of the Bears injury report, it leaves me with mixed feelings:
More from the Bears injury report
Cornerback Kyler Gordon remains limited in practice due to the hand injury that put him on IR after Week 1. The Bears designated Gordon for a return from injured reserve earlier in the week. Traditionally, opening the 21-day practice window suggests a player is closer to returning than not. But I’m just not sure how effective Gordon can be at cornerback if he is practicing with limitations. Considering the hand-fighting and grabbing that cornerbacks do, it makes me wonder if Gordon will be available on Sunday.
The collection of Bears not practicing on Thursday remains concerning. Running backs Khalil Herbert (ankle), Roschon Johnson (concussion), and Travis Homer (hamstring) were unavailable on Thursday. Same for wide receiver Equanimeous St. Brown (hamstring) and offensive lineman Lucas Patrick (concussion). Tight end Marcedes Lewis didn’t practice either, but that comes with the territory of getting the veteran’s rest day treatment.
Another tight end (Cole Kmet) was limited in practice for a second consecutive day due to a hamstring issue. When you take into consideration how impactful Kmet has been in helping quarterback Justin Fields become a better passer, I hope the hamstring injury isn’t serious enough to knock him out of playing on Sunday against the Vikings. Overall, seeing the number of hamstring injuries (four of ’em!) is a bit concerning. However, that could be a result of the quick turnaround the Bears had going from Week 4 to Week 5. My hope is that the Bears are just exercising an abundance of caution when it comes to their players on the mend.
Safety Eddie Jackson (foot) remains limited for a second consecutive practice. Jackson thought he could be back for the Thursday Night Football game against the Washington Commanders. And perhaps Jackson could be back in the fold on Sunday against Minnesota after a lengthy layoff. It’s just that I’d have more confidence in that scenario playing out if he could put together one (1) full practice.
We’ll close out on a high note with center Doug Kramer (thumb) and cornerback Terell Smith (ankle) putting in a full workload at Thursday’s practice. Like Kyler Gordon, Kramer was designated for a return from IR earlier in the week. As for Smith, his ankle issue limited him in practice on Wednesday. But things must be looking better since he was a full go on Thursday.
Once again, it might’ve been more time-friendly to list the players who were healthy instead of going through the laundry list of injured Bears. But we did get some good news today, so it wasn’t all bad. Hopefully, more will come tomorrow.
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