Byard, Odunze show up on Bears’ injury report
Chicago Bears wide receiver Keenan Allen is still working his way back from a heel injury. On Thursday, the 12th-year NFL veteran was a limited participant in practice for the second consecutive day. Allen hasn’t played since the season opener on Sept. 8.
Fellow receiver Rome Odunze popped up on the injury report Thursday with a hip injury after being a full participant a day earlier. Odunze had been dealing with a knee injury earlier this month. It’s unclear if the hip injury occurred in practice. Odunze was a limited participant Thursday.
Safety Kevin Byard was also a new addition to the injury report. Byard sat out practice with a back injury.
Tight end Marcedes Lewis (rest), defensive tackle Zacch Pickens (groin), cornerback Terell Smith (hip), defensive end Darrell Taylor (knee/illness) and defensive tackle Andrew Billings (knee) also sat out practice Thursday.
In addition to Allen and Odunze, right tackle Darnell Wright (back), fullback Khari Blasingame (hand/knee) and left tackle Braxton Jones (knee) were limited participants.
Defensive end Montez Sweat (elbow) and right guard Nate Davis (groin) both returned to full participation.
Pittsburgh Steelers quarterback Justin Fields recently shared an opinion of his successor with the Chicago Bears, Caleb Williams, from when they initially met. Fields was drafted by the Bears with the No. 11 overall pick in the 2021 NFL draft. After three seasons as the team’s starting quarterback, the Bears decided to move on from him after they failed to achieve a record above .500. In March
2024, they traded him to Pittsburgh in exchange for a 2025 sixth-round draft pick. Then, about a month later, Chicago drafted Fields’ replacement in Williams with the No. 1 overall pick. Williams won the 2022 Heisman Trophy award and set school records for touchdown passes and passing yards at the University of Southern California.
Now, with Fields thriving in his first three games with the Steelers, he opened up on what it was like to meet Williams for the first time in 2020.
As a guest on “Not Just Football with Cam Heyward,” Fields shared that he first met Williams during the Elite 11, an annual competition showcasing the nation’s top high school senior
quarterbacks. Williams went on to be named MVP of the event. “First time I met him was in high school at the Elite 11,” Fields said. “He was light and day better than everybody else. I mean, arm was live. It was no comparison. Him and J.J. McCarthy (Minnesota Vikings quarterback) were the best two when I went there and went to go see him in Nashville.”
In Week 4, the Steelers will travel to Indianapolis to face the Colts, while the Bears will host the Los Angeles Rams.
