The Chicago Bears have been busy this offseason, and they are in the process of putting the finishing touches on their roster ahead of the start of the 2026 campaign. While they have gotten through the hardest part, which involved trimming their team down to 53 players, there are still some decisions that Chicago has to make.
One such example involves safety Coby Bryant, who suffered a knee injury in August that forced him to undergo surgery. While it isn’t necessarily a season-ending injury, there’s a decent chance that Bryant will not suit up for the Bears at all this year. All eyes have been on Chicago’s handling of Bryant amid his injury status, and the team has made a final decision on how it will proceed with him throughout the year.
While the Bears lost a handful of members of their secondary this offseason, they made a flashy signing by bringing Bryant to town in free agency. After he helped the Seattle Seahawks win Super Bowl LX, Chicago rewarded Bryant with a three-year, $40 million contract to come in and man one of their two starting safety positions.
And yet, to this point, Bryant’s time in town has been defined by injuries. After he initially suffered a hyperextended left knee, Bryant was forced to undergo surgery to repair a small fracture in that knee. The recovery timeline for Bryant is four to six months, which could wind up costing him the entire year.
The Bears found themselves in a tough spot with Bryant. They could have placed him on injured reserve during training camp, which would have ended his season, but they opted to wait and gather more information on his status. After cutting their roster down, Chicago announced that it had opted to place Bryant on injured reserve, which has left the door open for him to return later this season.
“We have made the following roster moves:
▪️ Placed Coby Bryant & Hayden Large on IR
▪️ Signed James Lynch & Jack Sanborn
▪️ Signed fourteen players to the practice squad.”
Coby Bryant Still Could Make His Bears Debut in 2026
Rather than ruling Bryant out for the year, the Bears are giving him a shot to get back on the field at some point later this season. Based on his aforementioned recovery timeline, the quickest Bryant could return to action would be in December, but Chicago isn’t going to rush him back just for the sake of doing so. The team is giving itself options with Bryant, but it isn’t committing to anything when it comes to the future right now.
With Bryant out, the Bears are going to task Cam Lewis with replacing him as the starter next to Dillon Thieneman for the time being. Chicago also has Elijah Hicks, Xavier Woods, and Skyler Thomas at its disposal, but that doesn’t make the loss of Bryant sting any less. Bryant could return at some point later in the year, but for now, his focus is solely on his injury rehab.
Bears Make Final Injury Decision on $40 Million Free Agent Signing