Khalil Mack was in no mood to answer injury questions Friday afternoon at Halas Hall. After going through Bears practice inside the Payton Center as a limited participant, the star outside linebacker was officially listed as questionable for Sunday's game against the Patriots. All signs point toward Mack at least making an attempt to play on his sprained right ankle. But Mack wasn't interested in offering his own personal forecast for Sunday.
"I ain't answering questions like that," he said.
Asked how he initially hurt his ankle in last weekend's loss to the Dolphins, Mack shrugged. "It's football."
Mack was reminded that he has never missed a game during his five NFL seasons, a streak of 69 consecutive games played. Asked how close he ever came to missing a game during his time with the Raiders, Mack shrugged again.
"Man," he said, "I ain't even talking about that either."
At this point, with Mack making it through Friday's practice without aggravating the ankle injury, it would be a surprise if he wasn't in uniform and active Sunday. But the official word on his status won't come until 90 minutes before kickoff.
Coach Matt Nagy said he will keep tabs on where Mack is at mentally and physically as the Bears go through their paces Saturday in Lake Forest and again on Sunday morning when the team arrives at Soldier Field.
"Just trying to keep a feel as to where we think he's at and where he thinks he's at," Nagy said. "And when we get to the time when we have to make a decision, then we'll go with what we feel is best for him and best for the team."
Two others Bears starters were listed as questionable for Sunday. Receiver Allen Robinson is dealing with a groin issue that kept him out of Thursday's practice. But Robinson returned to the field on Friday. Slot cornerback Bryce Callahan, meanwhile, suffered an ankle injury on Thursday afternoon and sat out Friday's work. If Callahan had to sit out Sunday, veteran Sherrick McManis would likely step into his role on defense.
Fellow cornerback Marcus Cooper (hamstring) is doubtful for Sunday.
On the bright side for the Bears' secondary, Prince Amukamara was a full participant in Friday's practice, no longer hindered by his hamstring injury. Amukamara is full-go for Sunday's game.
As for Mack, he has faced the Patriots and quarterback Tom Brady twice before _ in Week 3 of his rookie year in 2014 and Week 11 of last season. Mack sacked Brady once last season but understands the challenges of trying to get after a quarterback who gets rid of the ball so quickly.
"That's the whole point," Mack said. "You just have to understand that he's going to use those different things to slow you down. So it's just getting ready for that. ... He's one of the best playing. He definitely manages the offense and he puts everybody in position to make plays. That's definitely what makes him one of the best."
Mack was also asked what it has meant to him to have never missed a game but still wanted no part of a health-related question.
"I ain't here to talk about that either," he said. "You know what I'm saying? It's football. At the end of the day, I'm going to make sure I'm right."
