LAKE FOREST, Ill. – Bears cornerback Nate Vasher is out indefinitely after fracturing his right hand and re-injuring his right thumb in last Sunday’s 27-3 victory over the St. Louis Rams.

Nate Vasher ranks second among current Bears with 18 career interceptions.

The fifth-year pro sustained the injuries early in the fourth quarter while trying to tackle running back Kenneth Darby on a 3-yard run.

Lovie Smith said that Vasher will “be out for a while,” but the coach declined to speculate about whether the Bears will place the 2004 fourth-round draft pick on injured reserve.

“Right now all I can say is he’s out, he’s not playing this week [in Minnesota],” Smith said. “Whenever you have a fracture and you re-injure the same hand that you had a little trouble with, I mean you can go from there, so right now just know that he’s out now.”

Vasher has been plagued by injuries the past two seasons. After missing 12 games with a groin injury last year, he was forced to sit out three contests this year following wrist surgery.

Vasher had 16 interceptions in his first three seasons with the Bears and earned a spot in the Pro Bowl in 2005 after picking off eight passes. But he has failed to display the same big-play ability this year, registering 29 tackles with one interception and no forced fumbles or fumble recoveries.

“It’s hard to get going when you have two injuries,” Smith said. “Two times you’ve been injured that kept you out of games, it’s really hard to get into the flow when that gets going.”

Corey Graham will start in Vasher's place. The two had been sharing reps the past few weeks after Graham made three starts when Vasher was hurt the first time.

“Corey’s played a lot of football,” Smith said. “He’s a good player. We feel comfortable with him playing, as we do Trumaine McBride, so we have a couple other guys that have played a little bit of ball. It’s still hard when you lose your starter, a guy like Nate. But it’s a long year; injuries happen.”

Scoring change: Matt Forte is such a good running back that he even gains yards when he isn’t playing: The NFL changed Forte’s 7-yard reception in the third quarter last Sunday against the Rams to a run, ruling that quarterback Kyle Orton flipped the ball backwards.

Forte now officially rushed for 139 yards on 21 carries and had one reception for seven yards.  This season he now has rushed for 916 yards on 226 attempts, a 4.1-yard average. The ruling also changes Orton’s stats. He now completed 17 of 28 passes for 132 yards.

A big fan: No one has been more impressed with what Forte has accomplished this season than Ron Turner, who’s been a big fan of the rookie’s since the day he arrived at Halas Hall.

“It’s tremendous what he’s done,” said the Bears offensive coordinator. “The consistency that he’s been able to do it with is probably the most amazing thing. A lot of rookies have come in and shown flashes and done some good things. He’s done everything well for an extended period of time throughout the whole season.

“If you know him, it’s not surprising. He’s very even-keeled, very intelligent, and a hard worker. He’s got everything necessary, the traits necessary character-wise, to come out and play consistently well.”

Health beat: In addition to Vasher, other Bears who did not practice Wednesday were receiver Marty Booker (knee), safety Mike Brown (calf), tight end Desmond Clark (knee), defensive tackle Tommie Harris (rest) and linebacker Jamar Williams (groin).

For the Vikings, offensive lineman Artis Hicks (elbow) did not practice; and defensive end Jared Allen (shoulder), linebackers Vinny Ciurciu (hand) and David Herron (shoulder), tight end Garrett Mills (ankle) and safety Madieu Williams (shoulder) were limited.

Roster move: The Bears on Wednesday signed rookie receiver Travis Brown to the practice squad. Brown entered the NFL with the Seahawks as an undrafted free agent and also spent time with the Bengals before being waived in August after reaching an injury settlement.

After four seasons at New Mexico, Brian Urlacher’s alma mater, Brown ranks third on the school’s all-time receiving list with 182 catches and fifth with 2,196 yards.