Bears DE Akiem Hicks abruptly ends interview over injury remarks

During tough times, there’s usually some frustrations that occur for players, including Bears DE Akiem Hicks who ended an interview early.

When a professional sports team is going through tough times, there are certain actions that usually take place during the season. They range from teammates fighting inside the locker room and visible frustrations on the sidelines, to surprise benchings and players squabbling with the local media. That last action occurred Tuesday afternoon involving Bears star defensive end Akiem Hicks and former Chicago Bears wide receiver Tom Waddle.

Hicks, appearing for his weekly hit on ESPN 1000’s Waddle & Silvy show, discussed topics ranging from his favorite Thanksgiving pies, his rehab progression and how he feels when fans boo his team. Things took a turn, however, when Hicks began to question the hosts’ fandom and what it means to be a real fan of the Bears following teammate running back Tarik Cohen’s comments on booing.

“If the wind blows a certain a way, don’t hop off the bandwagon,” Hicks said. “Ride with us, we’re down right now, we know that but we’re fighting to get back up. So roll with us, we didn’t do this on purpose. We didn’t try to get ourselves in this situation. But we’re doing everything that we can to climb out of this hole. So be supportive.”

Waddle, who played with the Bears from 1989-1994, then sarcastically rebutted, asking if Hicks was trying to get himself injured in Week 5 against the Oakland Raiders.

“You mean you didn’t put your arm in between those two Raiders and it popped out of joint on purpose?” he asked. “No, I’m joking.”

Hicks immediately took offense to the question. “Hey! That’s a joke?!” the Pro-Bowl lineman asked. “You think that’s a joke? You’re going to joke about somebody’s injury? No, I’m perfectly respectful. I’ll tell you what, you will not joke about an injury. You have a blessed day, this is the last time I’m on this radio station.” He then hung up.

While Waddle and co-host Marc Silverman (known on the show as “Silvy”) apologized and attempted to reconnect with Hicks, No. 96 took his frustrations to social media, tweeting: “Lol they got me! Baited me right into it. Good work 👍” He then added “You don’t joke about someone’s nearly season ending injury. It’s just not funny. Shouldn’t have lost my cool but ‘To err is human, to forgive divine.'”

This isn’t the first time a Bears player has gotten into it with the media, but situations like these rarely happen when the team is winning. Frustrations can sometimes boil over, though, and Hicks was not pleased with where the conversation was going.

Prior to the altercation, though, Hicks did reveal his rehab is progressing well.

“We’re in a good position and we’re going the right direction,” he said.

Hicks wouldn’t commit to returning in Week 15 against the Green Bay Packers, the earliest he could come back from injured reserve.

While his next appearance on Waddle & Silvy is up in the air, Hicks is working hard to return to the field at some point this season.