Tag: Akiem Hicks

Bears hopeful DL Akiem Hicks can return to practice Sunday

The Bears are closer to potentially getting back DL Akiem Hicks in Week 15, although they hope he can start practicing Sunday.

As the Chicago Bears head into the final quarter of what’s been a disappointing 2019 season, they’re clinging to slim playoff hopes — and they might be getting back a key member of the defensive line in the process.

After suffering an elbow injury against the Oakland Raiders in Week 5, Bears defensive lineman Akiem Hicks has been on injured reserve since Oct. 15. Hicks is eligible to start practicing Sunday with the team, although he won’t be permitted to return to game action until Week 15, where the Bears will travel to Green Bay to face the Packers.

“I hope that’s what our focus is,” coach Matt Nagy said Friday, via the Sun-Times. “We’re hoping that he’s able to come back this week and start practicing, so that’s kind of the goal.”

When asked if he thought Hicks could make it through an entire practice, Nagy said, “That, I don’t know. I guess we’ll see.”

The Bears would likely only activate Hicks if they remain mathematically in the hunt for a playoff spot. Currently, the Bears sit a 6-6 with a huge game looming against the 6-6 Dallas Cowboys next Thursday night. Chicago’s defense has certainly missed Hicks’ presence in the run defense, which has struggled with his absence.

“It’d be huge,” Nagy said. “Any time you have a guy that is the type of player he is, the type of leader he is, what he’s meant. I like the way he’s handled himself here in the last, whatever it is, seven or eight weeks. He’s done a great job at being around and being a great teammate and a leader and mentor to all these younger guys.

“It’s exciting when you get to this point. It does feel like forever ago, but hopefully we can get that moving forward.”

[lawrence-related id=432008,431956,431971,431976,431942]

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.

Loss of leader Danny Trevathan looms large for Bears

The loss of Danny Trevathan has a significant impact not only because of what he brought from a production standpoint but leadership.

Last week, Chicago Bears linebacker Danny Trevathan suffered a gruesome elbow injury in the first quarter against the Detroit Lions. It’s an injury that’s likely to force him to injured reserve for the remainder of the season — and hopefully not the end of his tenure in Chicago.

But the Bears lost more than just a great defensive player when Trevathan went down. They lost a leader.

“Just his presence, his poise, his leadership,” defensive coordinator Chuck Pagano said, via the Chicago Tribune. “He’s out in front of the huddle. He makes all the calls. He’s got the helmet communication. All that stuff, besides being the player that he is and the calming force that he is. You just don’t replace guys like that.”

The Bears should know. This isn’t the first time this season that Chicago will have to adjust to losing one of their best defensive players — and leaders — to injury.

Defensive tackle Akiem Hicks was lost to an elbow injury in Week 5 against the Oakland Raiders. He’s eligible to return from injured reserve in Week 15, but the effects of his absence — both from a physical and mental standpoint — have been felt drastically.

The Bears are hoping that’s not the case with Trevathan, who was relieved by veteran Nick Kwiatkoski, who filled in solidly.

“But again, it’s next man up,” Pagano said, “and 44 (Kwiatkoski) came in and did a great job again and capitalized on the opportunity.”

While Kwiatkoski stepped up with the best game of his career, it’s not enough to compensate for the loss of a leader like Trevathan on a defense that needs it.

Matt Nagy offers no official update on Danny Trevathan’s injury, but IR likely option

Matt Nagy didn’t have an update on Bears LB Danny Trevathan’s elbow injury, but injured reserve is likely a forgone conclusion.

[jwplayer rzKgNnfu-ThvAeFxT]

When Chicago Bears linebacker Danny Trevathan exited Sunday’s game against the Detroit Lions in the first quarter, it was safe to assume that he wouldn’t be returning anytime soon.

Not after suffering a gruesome elbow injury, where Trevathan’s arm was bent awkwardly as he brought down Lions quarterback Jeff Driskel.

While Trevathan had an MRI done Monday, Bears coach Matt Nagy offered no official update of Trevathan’s injury during his Monday press conference. But he didn’t sound optimistic.

“Yeah. It’ not real pretty,” Nagy said, via NBC Sports Chicago. “But it’s a part of this game. You hate to see that, so we’ll see how that goes moving forward.”

Nagy wouldn’t rule out placing Trevathan on injured reserve. Though, to be fair, Nagy said during his post game press conference that they wouldn’t know anything for a “few days.” But injured reserve feels like a foregone conclusion at this point given the gruesome look at Trevathan’s elbow injury.

“It could be,” Nagy admitted. “Again, we’ll know more here in the next couple of days, but we’ll see where it goes as far as weeks are concerned.”

With the impending loss of Trevathan, that leaves the Bears down two defensive leaders. Defensive tackle Akiem Hicks, who sustained a dislocated elbow in Week 5, was placed on injured reserve shortly after and is eligible to return in Week 15 against the Green Bay Packers.

“They’re two of the more vocal guys on that side of the ball,” Nagy said. “When you lose a guy like Danny in the middle, that leadership part, you lose a little bit…

“It’s hard, just because there is so much between the two. Just their personalities in general – they’re both a little bit different, with how they handle their personalities. But they’re very similar on the field, leadership-wise. As we move forward here, we’ll have guys that are always ready and prepared and the coaches will have them the same way.”

[lawrence-related id=430635,430631,430612,430602,430591]