Justin Fields has an ankle injury, but still is expected to play for the Chicago Bears against the Seattle Seahawks, Matt Nagy says

Chicago Bears quarterback Justin Fields is dealing with an ankle injury picked up during Monday night’s game against the Minnesota Vikings and will be limited in Wednesday’s practice at Halas Hall.

Fields said he tweaked his ankle in the second quarter against the Vikings but it didn’t bother him that much until after the game.

“When you’re playing in the game, you’ve got a bunch of adrenaline going,” Fields said. “So (the second quarter) is when I first felt it, but I was still good enough to play through it. Of course, it got worse after the game and the next morning. But it felt better this morning.”

Bears coach Matt Nagy said he doesn’t expect Fields to miss Sunday’s game against the Seattle Seahawks. Fields missed two games in Weeks 12 and 13 because he was recovering from cracked ribs.

“You always want to be smart … just like we treat every injury with every player,” Nagy said. “We’ll be more cautious than anything to make sure that every day and every hour that passes that he’s feeling better. Obviously, he played through it, so now we’ve just got to see how it goes and see where he’s at the rest of the week.”

Backup quarterback Andy Dalton is dealing with a left hand injury and is on the reserve/COVID-19 list. So the Bears potentially would have to go to Nick Foles if Fields can’t play.

Because of the short week of preparation, the Bears are only doing a walk-through Wednesday, which Nagy said will consist of more mental reps. The team also still has 11 players on the COVID-19 list, which prompted the Bears to hold only walk-throughs last week.

Still on the list are Dalton, wide receiver Allen Robinson, safety Tashaun Gipson, cornerback Jaylon Johnson, defensive linemen Bilal Nichols and Mario Edwards Jr., tight ends Jesse James and Jesper Horsted, inside linebacker Joel Iyiegbuniwe, running back Ryan Nall and wide receiver Isaiah Coulter. The Bears removed safety Eddie Jackson, right tackle Larry Borom and linebacker Sam Kamara from the list.

Offensive coordinator Bill Lazor and special teams coordinator Chris Tabor also remain out, but Nagy said they could be getting closer to returning.

As the Bears turn their attention to the Seahawks, Fields is readying to face off against a quarterback he has long admired. Just after the Bears drafted him, Fields said he has watched a lot of film on Russell Wilson and noted Wilson’s ability to extend plays, his deep ball, his accuracy and his leadership as impressive qualities.

“Russell does a great job of extending plays, not only him but their receivers they have over there,” Fields said. “They have a lot of explosive plays off scrambles. That’s one thing you can take away from Russell’s game. I’ve always looked up to him. The kind of person he is on the field and off the field. He’s a great quarterback and a great person.”

from Boston Herald https://ift.tt/3FmEi1L