The Chicago Bears might have one of the deepest running back rooms in the NFL, but they’ve been wearing thin at the position over the last few weeks.
Starter David Montgomery suffered a knee sprain against the Lions in Week 4, which was expected to sideline him for 3-5 weeks. He appeared primed to return around the Bears’ bye week.
While Damien Williams and rookie Khalil Herbert carried the load against the Raiders in Week 5, with good success, Williams was placed on the reserve/COVID-19 list the following week.
According to ESPN’s Adam Schefter, Williams still hasn’t been cleared from the reserve/COVID-19 list, and the earliest he could be cleared is Saturday. That’s due to a 10-day waiting period for unvaccinated individuals.
Bears’ RB Damien Williams, on the Reseve/COVID-19 list, was not at practice again today and couldn’t be cleared until Saturday at the earliest because he’s unvaccinated and there’s a mandatory 10-day waiting period.
— Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) October 21, 2021
While Herbert did a good job carrying the load by himself against the Packers last week, there’s not a lot depth behind him with Ryan Nall and Artavis Pierce.
If Williams is cleared in time for Sunday’s game, still expect to see plenty of Herbert at running back. Although going against the NFL’s best run defense in the Buccaneers, who are allowing 54 rushing yards per game, you’re probably not going to see the Bears running the football a whole lot.
