The void created on offense by Tarik Cohen’s injury, who’s out for the season with a torn ACL, will be difficult to fill. The Bears had limited depth at the position before Cohen went down, and now they may be forced to turn to a former wide receiver to pick up the slack.
Starter David Montgomery should see more snaps without Cohen in the game plan. Montgomery’s logged 110 reps so far, a tad more than 50% of the team’s 212 offensive snaps in 2020. That number will go up.
But the player likely to see the most increased playing time is Cordarrelle Patterson, who changed positions from wide receiver to running back during the offseason and will now be thrust into the RB2 role.
Coach Matt Nagy believes Patterson is up for the challenge.
“I’m really proud of him, the way he’s handled things,” Nagy told reporters Thursday. “I think it’s only going to get better, and possibly more carries.”
Patterson hasn’t logged more than 14 offensive snaps (Week 2) in any game this season, per Pro Football Focus, and has just 15 carries for 57 yards on the year. But his ability as a playmaker profiles favorably as a player who can do some damage if given more opportunities.
The Bears worked out several veteran running backs this week, including Texans standout Lamar Miller, but it sounds like Nagy is going to give Patterson the first crack at being the primary backup behind Montgomery.