Tag: Jason Spriggs

Bears place RT Bobby Massie on IR, promote OT Lachavious Simmons to active roster

It’s been a busy news day for the Chicago Bears in regards to their offensive line. And none of it is encouraging.

It’s been a busy news day for the Chicago Bears in regards to their offensive line. And none of it is encouraging.

The Bears have placed right guard Germain Ifedi and right tackle Jason Spriggs on the reserve/COVID-19 list. This after Spriggs tested positive for COVID, and Ifedi was ruled to be in close contact, according to Ian Rapoport.

Chicago also placed right tackle Bobby Massie on injured reserve after he suffered a knee injury that’s expected to keep him out at least a month. Massie will miss the next three games against the Tennessee Titans, Minnesota Vikings and Green Bay Packers before he’s eligible to return on Dec. 6 against the Detroit Lions.

The Bears made several moves in response to both events, promoting seventh-round rookie offensive tackle Lachavious Simmons to the 53-man roster and signing Aaron Neary to the practice squad.

The Bears offensive line is going to look quite different when they face the Titans on Sunday, depending on Cody Whitehair’s availability. Whitehair is recovering from a calf injury that Matt Nagy didn’t expect to keep him out long-term.

Here’s what the offensive line could look like without Whitehair on Sunday.

LT Charles Leno Jr.
LG Alex Bars
C Sam Mustipher
RG Arlington Hambright
RT Rashaad Coward

The Bears are down three starting offensive linemen and three of Sunday’s presumed starters have one game or none of experience. Not exactly encouraging for Week 9 against the Titans.

REPORT: Bears OT Jason Spriggs tests positive for COVID-19

An already shaky Chicago Bears offensive line just got shakier following NFL Network Insider Ian Rapoport’s report that reserve offensive tackle Jason Spriggs tested positive for COVID-19. #Bears OT Jason Spriggs tested positive for COVID-19, source …

An already shaky Chicago Bears offensive line just got shakier following NFL Network Insider Ian Rapoport’s report that reserve offensive tackle Jason Spriggs tested positive for COVID-19.

Spriggs filled-in for an injured Bobby Massie in Week 8, and with Massie expected to miss up to one month with a knee injury, Spriggs was setting up for a stretch of starts. Now, that job likely belongs to Alex Bars, who joined the Bears as an undrafted free agent from Notre Dame in 2019.

Chicago’s offensive line has come under criticism this week for its poor play. Calls for GM Ryan Pace to make a trade for an upgrade grew louder over the last few weeks, but the Bears remained inactive at the trade deadline.

Bears RT Bobby Massie could be out for a month with knee injury

The Bears are already without two starting offensive linemen, and now they’ll be without RT Bobby Massie possibly for a month.

The Chicago Bears are already without two starting offensive linemen as left guard James Daniels is done for the season with a torn pectoral muscle and center Cody Whitehair sidelined with a calf injury.

Now, it sounds like the Bears could be without right tackle Bobby Massie for at least a month, according to Brad Biggs of the Chicago Tribune. Massie suffered a knee injury in the first half of Sunday’s loss against the New Orleans Saints.

Jason Spriggs replaced Massie at right tackle against the Saints, where he missed one play due to a knee injury. But he came back and finished the game. Spriggs is the favorite to replace Massie at right tackle, assuming he’s healthy enough to do so.

We saw what this offensive line would look like without Spriggs, where Rashad Coward was moved from left guard to right tackle and Alex Bars filled at at left guard while Sam Mustipher remained at center in place of Whitehair. We’ll see what the Bears ultimately decide to do with an offensive line combination heading into Week 9 against the Tennessee Titans.

Bears OT Jason Spriggs leaves game with injury

The Bears OL was already a mess coming into Sunday’s game against the Saints. Now, midway through the game, it’s even worse.

The Bears offensive line was already a mess coming into Sunday’s game against the New Orleans Saints. Now, midway through the game, it’s even worse.

Reserve tackle Jason Spriggs, who entered the game as a replacement for an injured Bobby Massie, left the field in the second quarter due to an apparent knee injury. Spriggs walked off under his own power, according to 670 The Score’s Chris Emma.

Spriggs, who signed as a free agent this offseason, was injured on a drive that resulted in a field goal from kicker Cairo Santos to put the Bears up 13-3 near the end of the second quarter. His status for the game is not yet known, although Brad Biggs of the Chicago Tribune says Spriggs was on the sideline.

UPDATE: Spriggs returned to the lineup in the third quarter.

Bears RT Bobby Massie questionable to return with knee injury

The Bears are down another starting offensive lineman as right tackle Bobby Massie suffered a knee injury against the Saints.

The Chicago Bears offensive line has been under its fair share of criticism this season, and rightfully so. The Bears run game has been non-existent and pass protection has been questionable.

But the Bears offensive line has been ravaged by injuries with left guard James Daniels, who suffered a torn pectoral muscle and is out for the season. Center Cody Whitehair suffered a quad injury in last week’s game against the Rams, and he was ruled out for Sunday’s game against the New Orleans Saints.

Now, the Bears are down another starting offensive lineman as right tackle Bobby Massie suffered a knee injury in the first quarter of Sunday’s game. Jason Spriggs replaced him, and Massie is questionable to return.

The Bears are now missing three of their starting offensive linemen, which isn’t all-that-comforting considering Chicago struggled even with its starters.

Rashaad Coward got his third start at left guard in replacement of Daniels, and he’s been shaky throughout all three contests. Sam Mustipher started in relief of Whitehair on Sunday.

The Bears and Saints are tied 3-3 in the first quarter.

Bears injury report: David Montgomery limited, Robert Quinn DNP on Wednesday

The Bears released their first injury report ahead of their Week 1 game against the Lions, and there are some notable names on the list.

The Chicago Bears released their first injury report of the season ahead of their Week 1 match-up against the Detroit Lions, and there are some notable names on the list.

Running back David Montgomery, who suffered a groin injury a couple of weeks ago, was limited in practice on Wednesday. Also limited were outside linebacker Khalil Mack, wide receiver Cordarrelle Patterson, offensive lineman Jason Spriggs and wide receiver Javon Wims.

But perhaps the biggest concern on the injury report was outside linebacker Robert Quinn, who, after barely practicing during training camp, didn’t practice in the team’s first practice of the regular season. Quinn was listed with an ankle injury, which will definitely be a storyline to watch as this week develops.

Bears head coach Matt Nagy has insisted all training camp that he’s not worried about Quinn. But with Quinn missing the first practice of game week, it’s hard not to be concerned at this point.

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Bears camp: Allen Robinson, Akiem Hicks among those that did not practice on Saturday

There were several notable Bears that were absent from today’s practice, including WR Allen Robinson, DT Akiem Hicks and TE Jimmy Graham.

The Chicago Bears returned for their fourth padded practice on Saturday, which kicked up the tempo with a scrimmage between the offense and defense.

But there were several notable players that were absent from today’s practice, including receiver Allen Robinson. Robinson suffered an ankle injury during Friday’s practice, but head coach Matt Nagy didn’t sound too concerned.

Defensive tackle Akiem Hicks didn’t practice for the second straight day following a quad injury, although Nagy said Friday that he wasn’t worried. Tight end Jimmy Graham also did not practice Saturday on a veteran rest day.

Receiver Anthony Miller didn’t participate in team drills on Saturday, which was a day off. Nagy said “he’s in a good spot, there’s nothing going on with him.”

Bears offensive tackle Jason Spriggs did suffer a right knee injury during practice, which Nagy didn’t elaborate on.

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Bears roster 2020: Upgrades, downgrades, or level moves for each offensive unit

We surveyed every unit on the Bears offense to decide if they project to be better or worse in 2020, or if we can expect more of the same.

The Chicago Bears have kicked off training camp, where both returning and new faces to the roster have arrived at Halas Hall to begin preparation for the 2020 season. Obviously, the 2019 season didn’t go as planned for the Bears. But the hope is that, with some of the changes made this offseason, that Chicago can prove that last season was more of an anomaly than a trend.

Starting with the offense, there have been some big changes made to this roster, particularly at quarterback and tight end. Following an atrocious outing on offense in 2019, they were changes that needed to be made. Whether those changes ultimately result in a complete turnaround on offense remains to be seen, but it’s hard to imagine it could get worse than last season.

We surveyed every unit on the Bears offense to decide if they project to be better or worse in 2020, or if we can expect more of the same.

Quarterbacks

USA Today

Gained:

  • QB Nick Foles

Lost:

  • QB Chase Daniel

Heading into 2019, the belief was that Mitchell Trubisky was poised to take the next step in his young career and establish himself as the Bears franchise quarterback. That obviously didn’t happen. Following a disappointing outing by Trubisky, Chicago traded for former Super Bowl MVP quarterback Nick Foles, who will battle Trubisky for the starting job in training camp.

The main difference is that, this year, the Bears have two quarterbacks on their roster that, for all intents and purposes, are starting quarterbacks. No offense to Chase Daniel, who was an adamant backup for the Bears. But whoever Chicago’s back-up quarterback winds up being, he could be expected to step in and not miss a beat. Despite whoever wins the starting job, you can’t say the Bears didn’t upgrade at quarterback.

The verdict: Upgrade

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Bears 2020 training camp preview: Offensive line

The Bears return four of five starters on their offensive line heading into 2020. Let’s take a look at the unit heading into training camp.

The Chicago Bears will report to training camp on July 28 and one unit to keep an eye on is the offensive lineman. This offseason the Bears didn’t heavily invest into their offensive line that was ranked 29th in run blocking and 21st in pass protection.

The Bears also saw their long time offensive guard Kyle Long retire this offseason and looked into bottom tier free agents and late 2020 draft picks do fill some void and bring competition.

Let’s take a look at the offensive line heading into training camp.

Cody Whitehair

Kyle Terada-USA TODAY Sports

After switching from center to left guard before the start of the 2019 season, Whitehair saw himself playing center in the second half of the season. Entering his fifth year, Whitehair is confident that he’ll be playing center for the 2020 season, where he feels comfortable.

In 2018 Whitehair was very comfortable in playing center as he earned his only Pro Bowl selection so far through his career.

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5 things to know about new Bears OT Jason Spriggs

The Bears added depth at offensive tackle with the signing of Jason Spriggs. Get to know Chicago’s newest offensive lineman.

The Chicago Bears added depth to their offensive line with the addition of former second-round pick Jason Spriggs. Spriggs, who’s spent his career with the Packers, signed a one-year deal with Chicago on Friday.

While he certainly won’t be competing for a starting job, he’ll provide much-needed depth at a position that was a concern last season. While Spriggs hasn’t lived up to his second-round billing, perhaps new offensive line coach Juan Castillo can salvage some potential left in Spriggs.

Let’s get to know the Bears’ newest offensive lineman:

1. The Bears were interested in Spriggs in 2016 NFL Draft

Mark Hoffman/Milwaukee Journal Sentinel via USA TODAY NETWORK

It doesn’t seem like a coincidence that the Bears are taking a chance on Spriggs considering general manager Ryan Pace was interested in the former Indiana Hooiser in the 2016 NFL Draft.

The Bears were looking at drafting Spriggs, but Packers general manager Ted Thompson traded up to snag him before Chicago could with the 48th overall pick. Instead of getting Spriggs, the Bears traded back and drafted interior offensive lineman Cody Whitehair with the 56th overall pick.

Considering Spriggs hasn’t lived up to his second-round billing — and Whitehair has earned a second contract — the Bears certainly got the better end of the deal.

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