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The Chicago Bears were already preparing to finish out the 2022 season without top wide receiver Darnell Mooney after he suffered a season-ending ankle injury in Week 12’s blowout loss to the New York Jets. Now, they might have to do the same with veteran free safety Eddie Jackson.
According to Mike Garafolo and Ian Rapoport of NFL Network, Jackson is going to be “out indefinitely” for the Bears after he sustained “what appears to be a significant Lisfranc (foot) injury in Sunday’s game against the Jets.” Garafolo noted that Jackson is still getting opinions on his injured foot, but it stands to reason the injury could shut him down for Chicago’s five remaining regular-season games.
Jackson went down with a noncontact injury while trying to backpedal into coverage with about five minutes remaining in Sunday’s second quarter. He had planted his left leg at the Bears’ 30-yard line and immediately collapsed to the turf, taking him out of the play as Mike White tagged rookie Garrett Wilson for a 54-yard touchdown pass. After the Bears’ training staff helped him to the sideline and into the medical tent, Jackson took a cart into the locker room and was quickly ruled out for the game.
Jackson had been having a resurgent season in Matt Eberflus’ new defensive scheme for the Bears in 2022. He is tied for the third-most interceptions (four) in the league through the first 12 weeks and, according to Pro Football Focus, has allowed just eight receptions for 97 yards on 368 coverage snaps. He also currently leads all other NFC free safeties in Pro Bowl voting (54,291).
Jackson’s Injury Could Open Door for Another Rookie
If Jackson’s season is indeed over, the Bears will have to rely more heavily upon veteran safety DeAndre Houston-Carson moving forward. The 2016 sixth-round pick has played 681 defensive snaps over his seven seasons in Chicago and will give the Bears some much-needed experience at safety, especially with Jaquan Brisker still in concussion protocol and backup Dane Cruikshank also getting hurt in the loss to the Jets.
At the same time, Jackson’s injury could also open a door for seventh-round rookie safety Elijah Hicks to receive extended playing time in the final five games of 2022.
Hicks — the second of the Bears’ three seventh-round picks in 2022 — had only played on special teams heading into Week 12’s matchup in New York, but he was tabbed to step in at free safety once both Jackson and Cruikshank went out while Houston-Carson covered the strong safety spot. It certainly wasn’t the best defensive debut for Hicks, who made three tackles but also allowed a 22-yard touchdown catch the only time he was targetted in coverage. That said, it is hard to be too critical of the rookie given he was thrown into the fire for the first defensive snaps of his NFL career.
The Bears might not need to start Hicks if either Brisker or Cruikshank can get cleared in time for Week 13’s home game against the Green Bay Packers, but the lack of depth at the position makes it likely that Hicks will get more shots at redemption before the year is over.
Bears Monitoring a Few Other Injures Ahead of Packers
While there is no question that the injuries to Jackson and Mooney are the most damaging to the Bears coming out of their loss to the Jets, there are a few others that are worth monitoring as the team prepares for its rematch with the Packers in Week 13.
The big one, of course, is quarterback Justin Fields. The 2021 first-round pick did not play against the Jets due to the injury he sustained to his non-throwing shoulder in Week 11’s loss to the Atlanta Falcons and has not been cleared yet to suit up against the Packers for the upcoming week. While there is an entire week of practice ahead for the Bears to determine his status, there are a lot of long-term questions about his health that come into play for a team that has been nearly eliminated from the playoffs.
There are also a few more new injuries that spawned out of the Jets game. Right tackle Larry Borom — who entered the game after veteran Riley Reiff exited with a shoulder injury — was unable to finish the game due to an ankle injury he suffered in the fourth quarter, according to Eberflus during his Monday press conference on November 28. Eberflus also classified wide receivers Equanimeous St. Brown and Chase Claypool as “day-to-day,” but he did not specify what their injuries are.
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