Akiem Hicks craves recognition and enjoys the attention as a premier player on the Bears’ defense — but not quite like last Sunday night, as he tested his sore hamstring prior to the game against the Packers at Lambeau Field.
“All eyes are on you,” Hicks said. “Every coach is looking from the side like, ‘Is he going to play?’ The Sunday night football [television] camera slides down and gets in your mouth. It’s an interesting moment, but unfortunately I wasn’t able to play to my capability, so I wasn’t a go.”
Hicks’s absence was sure to be felt but not quite as much as it actually did. The Bears allowed touchdown drives of 75, 75 and 80 yards on the Packers’ first three offensive possessions and were never in contention in a 41-25 blowout loss.
“I had to deal with [being unable to play] and watching our team not playing as well as we wanted to, that was another tough aspect of it. But you’re going to win some and lost some and that unfortunately was not our day.”
Obviously, the Bears need Hicks. In back-to-back games with Hicks on the field, the Bears held Titans running back Derrick Henry to 68 yards on 21 carries (3.2 avg.) and Vikings running back Dalvin Cook to 39 yards on 20 carries. After Hicks left with the hamstring injury, Cook gained 57 yards on 11 carries (5.2 avg.) and the Packers rushed for 182 yards on 39 carries (4.7 avg.) last week.
The Bears are expecting Hicks to play Sunday against the Lions at Soldier Field. Hicks practiced on a limited basis Thursday and Friday and is listed as questionable.
And as coach Matt Nagy noted, Hicks’ presence invigorates not only the defense, but the entire team — beyond just his tackles, quarterback hits and sacks.
“I think it’s pretty obvious that he’s such a great player [and] being able to have him out there is huge,” Nagy said. “Just seeing him out there — his leadership. I think a lot of stuff goes unrecognized, what he does when he’s out there on that field. So we want to get him out there and it’s good to see him out there [at practice].”
Hicks said he took it “extremely personal” that the Packers often ran where he normally would line up on the defensive line.
“Not just for myself, but for my guys,” he said. “Our defensive line — my personal opinion is we have one of the best rooms in [Halas Hall] because there’s always a nice vibe. We get along. We talk well to each other, and we’re not afraid to criticize each other and want the best for one another.
“So I take it personally when we don’t play as a unit up to the high standard we’ve set. I feel like I want to be on the field, that I need to be back on the field — and just keep pushing toward that.”
