Montgomery, Trubisky not back in the mix yet
The Bears practiced Thursday without their Week 1 starters at running back and quarterback.
David Montgomery still has the concussion he suffered Sunday against the Titans. Backup quarterback Mitch Trubisky remained out of practice 11 days after he hurt his right shoulder when he was tackled in his only play against the Saints.
Trubisky missed all three practices last week when he flew to Los Angeles to get a second opinion on his shoulder. He won’t be put on injured reserve or require surgery.
“Mitch is back in the building,” coach Matt Nagy said. “He’s doing well. It was good to see him. He has a good energy with him right now. . . . It was good to see him back in here and get back on track.”
Five more Bears players missed practice with injuries: center Sam Mustipher
( knee), right tackle Jason Spriggs ( knee), nose tackle John Jenkins ( ankle), safety Sherrick McManis ( broken finger) and tight end Cole Kmet ( groin).
Spriggs came off the reserve/ COVID- 19 list earlier this week and will start Monday night against the Vikings if he’s healthy.
Tight end Jimmy Graham, defensive lineman Akiem Hicks and linebacker Danny Trevathan got a veteran day off. Meanwhile, two of the Bears’ best players were new additions to the injury report. Linebacker Roquan Smith ( back) and receiver Allen Robinson ( knee) were limited, as were safety Tashaun Gipson ( foot) and linebacker Barkevious Mingo ( shoulder).
Defensive lineman Roy RobertsonHarris was put on IR, as expected, after sources confirmed earlier this week that he’ll need shoulder surgery.
Virus update
Center Cody Whitehair and guard Lachavious Simmons remain on the reserve/ COVID- 19 list. Nagy wouldn’t say whether Whitehair is symptomatic.
“That’s not something that I need to get into,” he said.
It matters, though: NFL rules say players can’t return until at least 10 days after their symptoms first appeared and three days after they’re no longer present. Asymptomatic players can return as soon as five days after their initial positive test, provided they have two negative tests at least 24 hours apart.
The sooner he returns, the sooner Whitehair will stabilize an offensive line that was forced to give Alex Bars his first start at center — at any level — last week.
The Bears took safety Deon Bush off the reserve/ COVID- 19 list before practice. He landed there Saturday after having close contact with an infected person unaffiliated with the Bears.