Zach Miller Suffers Dislocated Knee
The Bears’ pass-catching contingent continues to dwindle, and after the gruesome Zach Miller sequence Sunday, it was predictable he suffered a significant injury.
Miller headed to the hospital after suffering what John Fox called a dislocated left knee, per Patrick Finlay of the Chicago Sun-Times. The painful sequence occurred on a touchdown reception that was subsequently reversed.
Chicago addressed the tight end position through multiple avenues this offseason, signing Dion Sims and drafting Adam Shaheen in the second round, but Miller remained the Bears’ top receiving option at this position. The Nebraska-Omaha product is a pending free agent.
The Bears were already playing without wide receivers Kevin White, Cameron Meredith and Markus Wheaton and will now be operating without the 33-year-old Miller.
Miller’s spent the past three seasons with the Bears, posting the top seasons of his career after spending time as a backup with the Jaguars.
NFL Practice Squad Updates: 10/28/17
Today’s practice squad updates:
Chicago Bears
- Signed: LB Jonathan Anderson
- Released: LB Carl Bradford
Oakland Raiders
- Released: DE Jhaustin Thomas
Minor NFL Transactions: 10/26/17
Here are today’s minor moves from teams’ 53-man rosters.
Chicago Bears
- Waived: LB Jonathan Anderson
Detroit Lions
- Promoted to active roster: T Dan Skipper
- Released: T Bryce Harris
Indianapolis Colts
- Promoted to active roster: LB Joshua Perry
Los Angeles Chargers
- Promoted to active roster: WR Geremy Davis
Chargers Trade WR Dontrelle Inman To Bears
The Chargers have traded wide receiver Dontrelle Inman to the Bears, sources tell ESPN.com’s Adam Schefter (on Twitter). Los Angeles will receive a conditional seventh-round pick in the deal, based on Inman production this season. 
On Sunday against the Panthers, Mitch Trubisky completed just four passes out of seven attempts. The Bears have multiple issues to address on offense, and that includes a lack of receiving weapons. Enter Inman, a pass-catcher with experience who has not seen a ton of action so far in 2017.
Inman has been with the Bolts for the last four seasons following a post-college stint in the CFL. The 28-year-old had a breakout campaign in 2016, with career-highs in receptions (58), receiving yards (810), and touchdowns (four).
Despite that performance, he slipped in the Chargers’ pecking order this year thanks to the re-emergence of Keenan Allen and a lingering hamstring injury. Hamstring issue aside, there wasn’t a clear path for Inman’s usage to improve now that first-round pick Mike Williams is with the team. The Bolts saw this coming, which is why they first started shopping Inman over the summer.
Top receivers Kevin White and Cameron Meredith have both landed on IR with major injuries. Markus Wheaton, meanwhile, is out through at least Week 9 with a strained groin. Given the lack of options in Chicago, Inman could slot in as the Bears’ WR2 behind Kendall Wright and ahead of Josh Bellamy, Tre McBride, and Tanner Gentry.
Inman has extra incentive to produce as he approaches unrestricted free agency. In the interim, he’s playing on the one-year, $2.746MM deal he received as a restricted free agent tendered at the second-round level.
The trade deadline is on Oct. 31. We’ve been seeing more trades than ever in the NFL, so this could be an eventful week.
NFL Workout Updates: 10/20/17
Today’s workout updates, with all links going to veteran NFL reporter Howard Balzer’s Twitter account:
Baltimore Ravens
- QB Alek Torgersen; WRs Philly Brown, Marlon Brown, Cyril Grayson, Jordan Payton; TE Gavin Escobar; (link)
Chicago Bears
- P Brock Miller (link)
Jacksonville Jaguars
- G Brandon Thomas; DT Josh Augusta (link)
Los Angeles Chargers
- T Michael Ola (link)
NFL Workout Updates: 10/17/17
Today’s workout updates, with all links going to veteran NFL reporter Howard Balzer’s Twitter account unless otherwise noted:
Buffalo Bills
- QB Matt Simms; DE Noble Nwachukwu; LB Boseko Lokombo (Twitter links via Adam Caplan)
Chicago Bears
- QB Alek Torgersen; WRs Jordan Payton, Kevin Snead (link)
Cincinnati Bengals
- TEs Brian Parker, Josiah Price, Steven Scheu; DBs Robert Blanton, K.J. Dillon, Harold Jones-Quartey, Robenson Therezie (Twitter links)
Denver Broncos
- WRs Devin Lucien, Tim Patrick, Domonique Young (link via Caplan)
Detroit Lions
- DE Jacquies Smith; Ks Dan Carpenter, Travis Coons (link via Caplan)
Houston Texans
- QB Taylor Heinicke (link via Caplan)
Jacksonville Jaguars
- CBs Alex Carter, Deji Olatoye, D’Joun Smith (link)
Kansas City Chiefs
- G Oni Omoile; T Nick Becton; DT Josh Augusta; LB Johnathan Calvin (link)
Los Angeles Chargers
- DB Justin Currie (link via Dave Birkett of the Detroit Free Press)
- DBs Robert Blanton, Antone Exum, Ed Reynolds, Ahmad Thomas (link via Caplan)
New Orleans Saints
- RBs Matt Asiata, Ka’Deem Carey, Dexter McCluster; WR Paul Turner; LB Bryan Braman (Twitter links via Caplan)
New York Jets
- DE Owa Odighizuwa; S Harold Jones-Quartey (link via Caplan)
San Francisco 49ers
- DE Devin Taylor (link via Caplan)
Washington Redskins
- RBs Troymaine Pope, Stanley Williams, Joseph Yearby; WRs Rashad Ross, Kendal Thompson; Gs Willie Beavers, Zach Voytek; T Storm Norton; ; LB Jayrone Elliott; CB Damian Swann; DBs Ed Reynolds, Orion Stewart, Mykkele Thompson (all Twitter links)
NFL Practice Squad Updates: 10/16/17
Today’s practice squad updates:
Arizona Cardinals
- Signed: DL Peli Anau
Atlanta Falcons
- Signed: RB Brian Hill
Chicago Bears
- Signed: WR Nelson Spruce
- Released: LB Jason Thompson
Cincinnati Bengals
- Signed: TE Scott Orndoff
Jacksonville Jaguars
- Signed: DB Charlie Miller
Los Angeles Chargers
- Released: LeShun Daniels
New York Jets
- Signed: WR Jalin Marshall
Pittsburgh Steelers
- Signed: S Jordan Dangerfield
- Released: S Jacob Hagen
Seattle Seahawks
- Signed: LB Josh Forrest
Washington Redskins
- Signed: OL Andreas Knappe
- Released: OL Jerry Ugokwe
Fox Called For Trubisky Switch Earlier
Although John Fox is known for his conservative tendencies, the Bears coach wanted to pull the trigger on starting the Mitch Trubisky era earlier than the team ended up going through with the quarterback switch. Fox raved about the No. 2 overall pick’s upside and was open to the team replacing Mike Glennon earlier than Week 5, Jason La Canfora of CBS Sports reports. However, ownership and management, due to Trubisky’s inexperience and the investment the team recently made in Glennon, halted the switch before finally agreeing to turn to the rookie after Glennon’s rough outing in Green Bay. Trubisky picked up his first career win as a starter Sunday, with the Bears beating the Ravens in overtime.
Markus Wheaton Suffers Torn Groin
Injuries have damaged the Bears’ passing game this season, and another key wide receiver looks set to miss extensive time.
Markus Wheaton suffered a groin tear and is expected to miss up to six weeks because of the malady, Adam Jahns of the Chicago Sun-Times reports. However, Wheaton was limited at Thursday’s practice. The fifth-year wideout practicing at all with this injury points to the possibility of a shorter recovery time.
But this is the latest batch of trouble for one of the most depleted receiving corps in the game. The Bears already lost Cameron Meredith to a torn ACL suffered in August, and Kevin White is also on IR because of his latest severe injury. Wheaton has also struggled with ailments over the past year. He missed 13 games during his final Steelers season because of a shoulder injury, and since joining the Bears suffered a finger injury and underwent an appendectomy. The broken pinkie finger sidelined Wheaton for two games this season.
If Wheaton is on the shelf for the time being, the Bears will be down to Kendall Wright, Deonte Thompson and Josh Bellamy as their top wideouts. This scenario played out earlier this season before Wheaton recovered to return. However, since returning, the former Steelers third-rounder hasn’t been effective. He only has one reception for four yards this season.
Wheaton signed a two-year, $11MM deal with $5MM guaranteed in March.
Minor NFL Transactions: 10/11/17
Today’s minor moves:
Chicago Bears
- Promoted to active roster: WR Tanner Gentry
- Released: WR Deonte Thompson
Dallas Cowboys
- Signed: LB Justin March-Lillard
Houston Texans
- Placed on injured reserve: LB Whitney Mercilus (story), DL J.J. Watt (story)
- Signed off Cardinals‘ practice squad: OL Dorian Johnson