The stumbling Carolina Panthers and Tampa Bay Buccaneers are far from Super Bowl form in the early season.
The Bears held out five players from practice: corner Sherrick McManis (hamstring), linebacker John Timu (ankle/knee), receiver Markus Wheaton (groin), guard Kyle Long (ankle) and defensive end Roy Robertson-Harris (hamstring). Long had offseason surgery on his ankle.
TMR: Great question. The boys all play fantasy, though none seem obsessed with it the way I was when I was 14 (and playing in my first game). Obviously, I would support them as much as possible and tell them I would help however I could.
Trey Wingo (NFL Live host, upcoming Golic & Wingo radio show, voice of a robot on an ESPN2 show I like a lot): What was your favorite line that you ever wrote for any of the shows that you worked on?
Impact: An argument can be made that Mercilus’ absence is even more damaging for the Texans long-term than Watt being gone, because the latter still had not regained his 2015 form as the NFL’s most dominant defender. Regardless, the Texans lost a duo that combined for 108 sacks since the 2012 season when Mercilus and Watt began playing together.
Impact: Freeman not only led the Bears in tackles last season with 86 despite missing four games because of a PED suspension, but the Bears also were stretched thin at inside linebacker because of injuries that hit the position. Fortunately for Chicago, fellow ILB Nick Kwiatkowski should be playing soon after recovering from his own pectoral injury.