Bears coach Matt Eberflus always tries to simulate the projected game conditions at practice during the week, but that’ll be difficult this week.
While the highs are in the 30-degree range through Thursday, the forecast calls for it to plunge below zero Friday and a high of 10 on Saturday with significant wind when the Bears host the Bills. In the meantime, the National Weather Service has issued a warning about blizzard conditions beginning Thursday night.
Eberflus said there haven’t been any precautionary conversations about pushing back the noon kickoff, but there are logistical concerns if the snow proves problematic on the roads. The Bears would typically go downtown Friday and stay in a hotel.
“We’re talking about different things right now to make sure we’re all squared away with travel down to the hotel and all those things,” he said. “We have plans in place to be able to slide things, move things forward, move things back. We’ve already got that ready to go, and our players will be ready.”
Bears plan to practice outside Wednesday, but Eberflus was unsure whether that’d be doable Thursday.
Including playoffs, the Bears are 7-3 at Soldier Field when the temperature is 10 degrees or colder — most recently enduring a minus-9 wind chill to beat the Cowboys 45-28 in 2013 when Eberflus was their linebackers coach.
“Couldn’t feel my feet,” he said. “You had to really make sure all your skin was covered because you would potentially get frostbite and all that, so you had to make sure you used Vaseline on your face to make sure everything’s covered up right.”
Sanborn done
Of the Bears’ more impressive developmental stories of the season is over after they put linebacker Jack Sanborn on injured reserve Tuesday. He hurt his left ankle against the Eagles and was wearing a protective boot and using crutches after the game.
Eberflus downplayed the severity of the injury, saying it wouldn’t have been season-ending if it had happened earlier, but the Bears have just three games remaining.
Sanborn, from Lake Zurich High School, made the team as an undrafted free agent out of Wisconsin and played 14 games, including six starts after Roquan Smith was traded. He is fifth on the team with 64 tackles and has two sacks and a fumble recovery.
Jenkins ‘looking good’
The scariest injury of the Bears’ season seems far less troubling than it initially appeared. Right guard Teven Jenkins, who was immobilized on the field Sunday after hurting his neck against the Eagles, was back at Halas Hall on Tuesday and might even play against the Bills.
Eberflus said Jenkins was “engaged, walking around [and] looking good,” and the injury is deemed day-to-day.
The Bears held a walk-through instead of practice, but were required to estimate all players’ availability if they had practiced and put Jenkins down as limited. Eberflus said it’s possible he will practice Wednesday or Thursday.
More injury concerns
The team also said wide receiver Chase Claypool (knee) would’ve been limited and cornerback Jaylon Johnson (ribs and finger) would’ve been full-go. It also projected that starting left guard Cody Whitehair (knee) and right tackle Riley Reiff (illness) would’ve been out.
Wide receiver Equanimeous St. Brown suffered a concussion against the Eagles and remains in the NFL’s protective protocol.
Back to last place
The Packers’ 24-12 win over the Rams on Monday assured the Bears of finishing fourth in the NFC North for the first time since their string of last-place finishes from 2014 through ‘17.
While it’s an embarrassment, it carries the benefit of assuring the Bears a theoretically easier schedule next season with games against fellow fourth-place finishers from NFC West, NFC East and AFC North.
