Getty Head coach Matt Eberflus and the Chicago Bears lost another WR to injury at practice on August 9.
Things are getting beyond thin for the Chicago Bears at wide receiver.
During the team’s August 9 practice, receiver David Moore went down with an apparent right leg injury. He had to be carted off according to multiple reports. According to ESPN insider Courtney Cronin, Moore looked to be “in a lot of pain” and appeared to suffer an injury to his right knee:
The Bears signed Moore to a one-year deal for just over $1 million this offseason, and his is the latest in a slew of injuries that have ravaged and the team’s wide receivers room.
Free agent signings N’Keal Harry (high ankle sprain) Byron Pringle (quad) and Dante Pettis (undisclosed injury, day-to-day) are also currently sidelined, as is 2021 third-round wideout Velus Jones Jr. (undisclosed, day-to-day), which has left Chicago quarterback Justin Fields very few wideouts to throw to.
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Bears Could Be Missing at Least 3 WRs When Opening Day Rolls Around
The timetable for Harry’s return is up in the air, Bears head coach Matt Eberflus confirmed on August 9. Eberflus also said the team doesn’t know when Pringle, who is expected to be either WR2 or WR3, will return. With Moore’s injury appearing to be a serious one, it’s looking as though the Bears will be without all three receivers when opening day rolls around on September 11.
While Moore was a long shot to make the 53-man roster and Harry making the team remains a question mark, but Pringle is a roster lock, and all these injuries are adding up. Fields, who is entering his second year in the league, needs to build a strong rapport with his receiving crew, and if the injury bug keeps biting, that’s going to be difficult.
Other than Darnell Mooney, Fields is heading into his first preseason Game on August 13 against the Kansas City Chiefs with a bunch of unproven talent at the WR position. According to Kevin Fishbain and Adam Jahns of The Athletic, at times during recent Bears’ practices, “Chris Finke, Nsimba Webster and Isaiah Coulter were Fields’ top three options” on offense — and that is more than a tad concerning.
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Bears Will Likely Be Exploring Free Agent WR Market Soon
With Harry, Pringle and Jones all out, the Bears have been leaning on new addition Equanimeous St. Brown, and there’s also free agent Tajae Sharpe, 2021 sixth-rounder Dazz Newsome and 2022 undrafted free agent Kevin Shaa in the mix.
Considering how important Fields’ development is, it wouldn’t be a surprise to see Bears general manager Ryan Poles scour the free agent market for the best fit at wide receiver. Current veteran WRs still available in free agency include former Buffalo Bills receivers Emmanuel Sanders and Cole Beasley, ex-Miami Dolphins and Houston Texans WR Will Fuller, former Indianapolis Colts wideout T.Y. Hilton and three-time Pro Bowl WR Odell Beckham Jr., who is recovering from a torn ACL and is expected to miss at least the first part of the upcoming season.
Beasley and Fuller would be the best fits in offensive coordinator Luke Getsy’s system, and between those two, Fuller would be cheaper due to his injury history. Beasley, 33, had a career-high 967 receiving yards in 2020, and he tied his career-high in receptions last season (82), so he’s still producing and wouldn’t be a bad addition for Fields and the Bears.
Whether they sign Beasley, Fuller or someone else, another wideout is likely heading to the Windy City to bulk up the Bears’ WRs room, stat.
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