The Chicago Bears were defeated, 25-20, by the Philadelphia Eagles, dropping them to 3-11 on the season. But that wasn’t the biggest loss on Sunday.
Right guard Teven Jenkins suffered a scary neck injury during the first drive of the game. Jenkins, surrounded by his entire team, was loaded onto a stretcher and carted off the field. He was later taken to a local hospital for further evaluation.
Bears coach Matt Eberflus provided an “encouraging” update after the game, saying that “he was responsive” and was “moving his hands.” That was the only update Eberflus was provided at that time, but he’s sure to have further updates in the coming days.
Center Sam Mustipher explained his vantage point of the play.
“It looked like his neck got stretched out a little bit on the pull,” Mustipher said, via the Chicago Tribune. “From everything I’ve heard from everybody around the locker room, he’s doing well. He was moving his hands and talking on the field. In a situation like that, when somebody gets pulled off on a stretcher, that’s what you want to see.”
It was a scary situation that happened on the field. And considering everything Jenkins has been through since the offseason, you have to feel for the former second-round pick.
“All my prayers and wishes are out to him doing well,” left tackle Braxton Jones said.
Jenkins has been the Bears’ best offensive lineman this season, so his loss severely impacted the offensive line in this game. Chicago allowed six sacks on quarterback Justin Fields, including five in the first half.
“That’s tough,” Mustipher said. “And then especially when it happened early on, your juices are flowing, your adrenaline is flowing, getting out there to play a physical game against a very good opponent. And then to see something happen like that, it’s kind of deflating.
“But you’ve got to regroup, refocus and then get back into it. But, yeah, it’s definitely tough to see.”
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