Getty Bears head coach Matt LaFleur.
The injury situation in the Chicago Bears’ secondary just took another step in the wrong direction ahead of Week 4’s home game against the Denver Broncos.
The Bears officially placed slot cornerback Josh Blackwell on injured reserve with a hamstring injury on Friday afternoon. He had already been ruled out for Sunday’s game against the Broncos, but he will now have to miss at least three more games and will not be eligible for activation back to the 53-man roster until Week 8 at the earliest.
Blackwell has been the Bears’ preferred backup option at the nickel spot after starter Kyler Gordon broke his hand in the 2023 season opener, but the 24-year-old has also spent the past three weeks on the injury report with a hamstring injury and even missed Week 2’s loss to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers with the issue before returning in Week 3.
Now, the Bears will have to depend on third-stringer Greg Stroman Jr. in the slot for at least the next few weeks as they wait for their other cornerbacks to get healthy again.
The Bears have also ruled out top cornerback Jaylon Johnson (hamstring) and free safety Eddie Jackson (foot) for Sunday’s game against the Broncos, leaving them with just two healthy starters — Jaquan Brisker and Tyrique Stevenson — in their secondary.
Eberflus: Rookies ‘Ready’ to Step Into Starting Roles
Over the course of his 14 seasons as an NFL coach, Matt Eberflus is not sure if he has ever coached a secondary as young as the one the Bears will trot out in Week 4.
“It’s probably No. 1,” Eberflus said with a laugh when asked Friday where his current group of defensive backs ranks in terms of the youngest he has ever coached.
At the same time, the Bears will have an opportunity on Sunday to see how their two rookie draft picks — Stevenson and fifth-rounder Terell Smith — handle themselves as full-time starters on the perimeter against a formidable group of Broncos receivers.
“Those guys are excited,” Eberflus said. “They’re ready, and we played a lot of young guys last year. I think those guys have talent and I think they’re good players, and I’m excited to see Smitty [Terell Smith] and Tyrique [Stevenson] in there full-time. It’s going to be a good challenge for those guys. They’ve got really good receivers, got really good speed in that position group, so it’s going to be a good challenge.”
Stevenson has been a Day 1 starter on the perimeter, but Smith only just played his first extended regular-season snaps for the Bears last Sunday in relief of Johnson. According to Pro Football Focus, Smith played 57 defensive snaps against the Kansas City Chiefs in Week 3, primarily on the perimeter, and faired decently in coverage, allowing three catches for 63 yards on seven targets and notching his first career pass breakup.
Now, Smith did compete with Stevenson for the No. 2 perimeter job opposite Johnson in the early parts of training camp before an injury set him back in the competition, but it is still a tough ask for a rookie to jump into the starting lineup against an offense that houses a lot of speed between Jerry Jeudy, Courtland Sutton and Marvin Mims Jr.