Bear Digest

Chicago Bears Friday Injury Report: Now D-Line Health Is an Issue

Darrell Taylor joins Montez Sweat and DeMarcus Walker as questionable while Zacch Pickens is out, but Matt Eberflus is confident a few of the veterans will be ready to go.

Gene Chamberlain

Montez Sweat is one of three Bears defensive ends questionable on the injury report for Sunday's opener.
Montez Sweat is one of three Bears defensive ends questionable on the injury report for Sunday's opener. / Jamie Sabau-Imagn Images
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The Bears have ruled out backup defensive tackle Zacch Pickens for Sunday's season opener with the Tennessee Titans and he's not their only defensive line injury issue.

Pickens has been plagued since before the final preseason game with a groin injury and had been limited in practice all week.

"So he's still working through some stuff with soft tissue," coach Matt Eberflus said. "It's positive, something good, so it's just not ready for right now."

No one else is out of Sunday's game for Chicago yet, but several will be questionable including three defensive ends.

Darrell Taylor popped up on the injury report on Friday. He missed practice after injuring his foot on Thursday in practice. The Bears had just traded a sixth-round pick to Seattle to acquire Taylor at the end of preseason.

Taylor will be a true game-time decision.

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"He got stepped on yesterday on his foot," Eberflus said. "So we'll work him out tomorrow, work him out (prior to) the game and see where he is at at that point."

Also questionable are defensive end Montez Sweat (toe), defensive end DeMarcus Walker (groin) and wide receiver Keenan Allen (heel). All three of those players were limited Wednesday and Thursday but Allen and Sweat both went through full practices on Friday. Walker was limited on Thursday and Friday.

Although Allen and Montez are questionable, coach Matt Eberflus said they are expected to play. He even went so far as to say Allen was off the injury report, but he wasn't.

The Bears decided to go with extra defensive ends on the 53-man roster this year and their depth could be tested right away.

Losing Pickens probably means either Byron Cowart or newly acquired Sam Roberts will be promoted from the practice squad for the game as a backup to tackles Andrew Billings and Gervon Dexter.

Tackle Kiran Amegadjie (quad, oblique), guard Ryan Bates (shoulder) and running back Roschon Johnson (toe) all went through full practices Friday after they had missed practice time earlier in the week and they have been removed from the injury report.

For the Titans, safety Jamal Adams (hip) and linebacker Otis Reese (concussion) are out and wide receiver DeAndre Hopkins (knee) is questionable. The Titans signed Adams in free agency. Both he and Reese are backups on the depth chart. Hopkins has been in practice on a limited basis all week.

Twitter: BearsOnSI

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Gene Chamberlain
GENE CHAMBERLAIN

BearDigest.com publisher Gene Chamberlain has covered the Chicago Bears full time as a beat writer since 1994 and prior to this on a part-time basis for 10 years. He covered the Bears as a beat writer for Suburban Chicago Newspapers, the Daily Southtown, Copley News Service and has been a contributor for the Daily Herald, the Associated Press, Bear Report, CBS Sports.com and The Sporting News. He also has worked a prep sports writer for Tribune Newspapers and Sun-Times newspapers.