The Bears are scheduled to return to the practice field Monday morning at Olivet Nazarene University, pushing to finish their two final days of training camp. But coach John Fox might want to consider a safer alternative: cloaking all his starters in bubble wrap and quarantining them until September.
At present, an injury bug that's been biting since training camp's first morning appears to be growing only more vicious. Second-year center Hroniss Grasu suffered the latest and most devastating injury among the starters during Saturday's Family Fest practice. During a screen play late during the first team offense's work at Soldier Field, Grasu stepped awkwardly on his right foot and crumpled to the grass.
Fox said immediately after the practice that the injury appeared to be "fairly serious." And as the team continued gathering information Sunday, the fears inside the organization were that Grasu had suffered a season-ending anterior cruciate ligament tear, an injury that would end the center's 2016 season before it really got going.
The Bears aren't expected to provide a formal update until practice resumes Monday in Bourbonnais, Ill. Regardless, it's a setback that leaves an injury-depleted team reeling again.
Quarterback Jay Cutler, who showed obvious concern as Grasu was loaded onto a cart Saturday afternoon, has to be swallowing hard and feeling a gut-twisting sense of deja vu. After the Bears' offense was riddled with injuries last season, particularly to the offensive line and receiving corps, similar attrition seems to be occurring already, before the team has even arrived at its preseason opener.
On Saturday, for example, Cutler led a unit that was without top receiver Alshon Jeffery (hamstring), slot receiver Eddie Royal (concussion) and tight end Zach Miller (concussion). Combined, that trio of targets has missed all or parts of 14 camp practices already, interrupting the Bears' push for offensive continuity.
Starting right guard Kyle Long also missed four practices after suffering a calf strain July 28. On the bright side, that injury proved to be minor and already appears to be deep in the rearview mirror. But that won't fully soothe Cutler or coordinator Dowell Logggains, who now find themselves in patience-testing scramble mode.
Grasu's sudden _ and perhaps permanent _ exit from the 2016 plans leaves Loggains with a decision on how best to utilize second-round pick Cody Whitehair and veteran lineman Ted Larsen. Both players have taken reps during training camp at both center and left guard. So it will be up to Loggains, Fox and general manager Ryan Pace in the days ahead to take a closer look at how to arrange that duo, to fill Grasu's spot and the one immediately to the left.
Grasu, meanwhile, will face a mentally taxing recovery process, a major setback to the development of a player whom the Bears were hoping would become a reliable long-term starter. Grasu's progress during the spring and summer had been noted by coaches.
Kevin Mawae, who was an eight-time Pro Bowl center during his 16 NFL seasons, has been working with the Bears _ and extensively with Grasu _ at training camp as a coaching intern. Mawae praises Grasu as an outgoing and coachable kid who has a firm grasp of the concepts and techniques he was being taught. The Bears had been pushing the soon-to-be-25-year-old center to savor his incremental growth while still seeing the long-term vision.
Said Mawae, before the injury: "I always use the analogy that we're building a house. We're working on the foundation. We're not hanging the drapes yet. Crown molding comes up in Years 12, 13, 14. So we're putting studs in the wall right now."
After Saturday, Grasu appears headed toward a new and unwanted reconstruction phase, needing to focus solely on his damaged right knee. And Fox and Loggains must continue to rearrange their furniture to keep their house in order.
At this stage, other than Grasu's injury, few of the Bears' other health setbacks have presented themselves as long-term problems. But Jeffery and Royal combined to miss 14 games last season with various injuries, so their continued absence remains disconcerting at best.
Miller, meanwhile, had his breakthrough season last year after missing the previous three-and-a-half seasons with his own rash of injury problems.
Jeffery's durability will remain a front-burner issue for the Bears until it isn't one. In other words, the standout receiver will need to complete more than five consecutive practices before worries about his resilience dissipate.
Oh, and yes, on the other side of the ball, outside linebacker Pernell McPhee remains on the physically-unable-to-perform list with little to indicate he will be returning to practice anytime soon.
An eternal optimist, Fox will continue to look forward, insisting this is all just an inevitable part of football. But with the Bears returning to Soldier Field on Thursday to face the Broncos in their preseason opener, there's no doubt the growing injury list has created significant anxiety.
