While the Chicago Bears rotated offensive linemen during regular-season games early last season in search of the right combination, the team settled on a starting five early this spring.
That lineup could require an adjustment when the Week 1 meeting with the Green Bay Packers arrives Sept. 10 at Soldier Field. Multiple sources told the Tribune that left guard Teven Jenkins is expected to miss time in the first month with a leg injury.
The Bears have been particularly guarded with injury information and did not reveal why Jenkins briefly missed time earlier in training camp. He did not play in Saturday’s 24-17 loss to the Indianapolis Colts at Lucas Oil Stadium, but coach Matt Eberflus elected to rest nearly all of his first-team players.
Injuries have marred Jenkins’ first two seasons and it’s possible the latest issue could keep him out six weeks.
How the team will address Jenkins’ absence remains to be seen. During a 60-minute practice without pads Monday, Lucas Patrick was playing center and Cody Whitehair was back at his familiar left guard position.
Patrick’s return was a welcome sight as he had missed most of the last two weeks. Asked about moving parts up front, running back Khalil Herbert expressed confidence in the unit as a whole.
Jenkins missed the start of his rookie season in 2021 after undergoing back surgery. He was sidelined at the start of training camp last summer and then missed two games in November with a hip injury. He played only 11 snaps in the final four games — missing two of them completely — after suffering stingers.
A second-round draft pick in 2021, Jenkins has appeared in 19 games and made 13 starts (11 last year) but has logged 100% of the snaps in only six games, making durability a legitimate question as he prepares for his third season. He has been a strong performer when healthy and settled in quickly at right guard last season, appearing to be a potential building block.
The Bears shifted Jenkins to the left side after signing Nate Davis to a three-year, $30 million contract in free agency. Davis has missed the majority of training camp with an undisclosed injury, but the team has been ramping him back up in the last week.
With three weeks until the regular season, Jenkins has some time, but sources believe this injury will stretch into next month. If the injury is going to linger, the Bears could consider placing Jenkins on injured reserve, although that move would not be made until after the initial 53-man roster is established at the end of the month. Players on IR must remain sidelined for a minimum of four games before returning to the active roster.
While the Bears have had some key players — including Davis, linebacker Tremaine Edmunds, wide receiver Chase Claypool and safety Jaquan Brisker — miss practice time, the team has been adamant none of the injuries is serious. Coach Matt Eberflus did not meet with the media Monday and is next scheduled to talk after practice Tuesday.
Ja’Tyre Carter, a seventh-round draft pick last year, has gotten ample time with the starters in training camp, especially with Davis out for an extended period. Carter and Alex Leatherwood, a former first-round pick of the Las Vegas Raiders claimed by the Bears off waivers last September, are other potential options with Jenkins injured.