Bears Lose Kyle Long For Season
The Bears have lost star offensive lineman Kyle Long for the season, according to Ian Rapoport of NFL.com (on Twitter). Long, the leader of the O-line, will leave a void that goes far beyond performance.
Long suffered a right ankle injury on Sunday and had to be carted off of the field. Based on that alone, the feeling in Chicago was that Long would be out for an extended period of time. Left guard Josh Sitton expressed frustration with Long’s unfortunate injury as the Bears have had bad luck in that department all year.
“It seems like we’ve got somebody freaking hurt every game,” he said (link via Patrick Finley of the Sun Times). “It sucks watching him down there on the ground. It’s tough to see one of your friends, one of your teammates and a helluva competitor, he was down there and he was in a lot of pain. It was tough to see.”
Long has only missed a pair of games during his three-plus years in the league, including the Bears’ Week 8 contest against the Vikings. The 27-year-old has been playing through a torn labrum in his left shoulder since the beginning of the season. Ted Larsen filled in for Long two weeks ago, and he’ll presumably slide into the starting right guard spot during his teammate’s absence. This would leave the Bears with a pair of lineman, Mike Adams and Eric Kush, on the bench.
Long signed a four-year, $40MM extension with the Bears in September. The 2013 first-round pick has been named to three Pro Bowls, and he was also a second-team All-Pro in 2014.
Injury For Bears' Jordan Howard?
- Bears rookie running back Jordan Howard suffered a possible Achilles tendon injury in Sunday’s loss to the Bucs, coach John Fox said (via Mark E. Ortega of NFL.com). Howard, a rookie out of Indiana, was thrust into a starting role earlier this year when Jeremy Langford was lost to injury. Langford is back in action now, but the Bears were still relying on him as their top ballcarrier. For the year, he has averaged 5.3 yards per attempt. We should know more about Howard’s status soon.
Bears Bring Back Fullback
- The Bears promoted fullback Paul Lasike to their active roster, Brad Biggs of the Chicago Tribune tweets. Lasike’s been active in four of Chicago’s eight games this season and has taken two handoffs, gaining three yards. The 26-year-old blocking back’s previous stay on the 53-man roster concluded when the Bears waived him to promote Pernell McPhee last month.
NFL Practice Squad Updates: 11/9/16
Today’s practice squad moves:
Carolina Panthers
- Signed: TE Scott Simonson, OT Pearce Slater
- Cut: TE Beau Sandland
- Placed On IR: DT Eric Crume
Chicago Bears
- Signed: OL Cornelius Edison
- Cut: OL Colin Kelly
Denver Broncos
- Signed: S Ryan Murphy
Houston Texans
- Signed: OL Jeff Adams
Indianapolis Colts
- Signed: WR Tevaun Smith
Kansas City Chiefs
- Signed: LB Earl Okine, CB Terrance Mitchell
- Cut: CB Tyler Patmon
Minnesota Vikings
- Signed: TE MyCole Pruitt
New Orleans Saints
- Signed: CB Brian Dixon
Seattle Seahawks
- Signed: WR George Farmer
Bears Work Out Two QBs
- The Bears worked out quarterbacks Dustin Vaughan and Josh Woodrum, per Adam Caplan of ESPN.com (Twitter link).
Bears Waive Cornelius Edison
- The Bears have cut offensive lineman Cornelius Edison, tweets Brad Biggs of the Chicago Tribune. Edison, who had been with Chicago since last year, could end up re-signing with its practice squad, according to Biggs.
Antrel Rolle Retires From NFL
Antrel Rolle has officially announced his retirement from the NFL. In an appearance on NFL Network’s Good Morning Football (Twitter link), the veteran said that he has moved on from football. 
“I’m at total peace with that,” Rolle said of his decision to retire. “Going out, you’re 33 years old and you go on injured reserve last year. That’s going to scare a lot of teams away. I understand how the business works and I’m fine with that either way.”
In the late spring, PFR ranked Rolle as the seventh-best defensive free agent still on the board, ahead of other notable defensive backs such as Antonio Cromartie, Cortland Finnegan, and Will Allen. However, his market never really developed. Rolle expressed an interest in reuniting to the Giants and the Dolphins were reportedly keeping Rolle’s number handy in case Reshad Jones made good on his holdout threats. Ultimately, there was no deal made in New York, Miami, or anywhere else.
An 11-year NFL veteran who earned three Pro Bowl nods during his time with the Cardinals and Giants, Rolle was an average player in 2015, grading out as the No. 39 safety in the league among 89 qualifiers, per Pro Football Focus. While he didn’t post any interceptions during his seven contests with Chicago, Rolle did register 30 tackles while defensing one pass.
All in all, Rolle enjoyed a long and successful career and that he can look back on fondly. During his announcement today, he indicated that he would like to serve as a TV analyst now that his playing days are over.
Practice Squad Updates: 11/2/16
Here are today’s practice squad moves.
Baltimore Ravens
- Signed: TE Nic Jacobs
Chicago Bears
- Signed: OL Williams Poehls
Cleveland Browns
- Signed: TE Connor Hamlett
Denver Broncos
- Signed: RB Terrell Watson
Green Bay Packers
- Signed: RB Brandon Burks (via Packersnews.com)
Kansas City Chiefs
- Signed: OL Zach Sterup
- Signed: OL Joe Cheek
- Cut: CB Tyler Patmon (Twitter link via Terez Paylor of the Kansas City Star)
Bears Work Out Four
- The Bears worked out a pair of defensive backs, according to Brad Biggs of the Chicago Tribune (via Twitter): Rashaad Reynolds and Ryan White. The team also worked out former Patriots offensive lineman Bryan Stork, as well as running back Daniel Davie.
[SOURCE LINK]
Practice Squad Updates: 11/1/16
Here are today’s practice squad moves:
Arizona Cardinals
- Signed: LB Zaviar Gooden, TE Brian Leonhardt
- Cut: T Martin Wallace
Baltimore Ravens
- Cut: RB Stephen Houston
Chicago Bears
- Cut: OT Arturo Uzdavinis
Cleveland Browns
- Cut: WR Mitch Mathews
Kansas City Chiefs
- Signed: LB Terrance Smith
New England Patriots
- Signed: OG Chase Farris, TE Austin Traylor
New Orleans Saints
- Signed: LB Lamar Louis
- Cut: DL Royce LaFrance
New York Jets
- Signed: OT Jesse Davis, WR Myles White
- Cut: C Kyle Friend, LB Reshard Cliett
San Diego Chargers
- Signed: LB James Burgess
- Cut: WR Kevin Norwood
San Francisco 49ers
- Signed: S Vinnie Sunseri
Seattle Seahawks
- Signed: WR George Farmer
- Cut: QB Joel Stave, FB Julian Howsare