The Bears on Wednesday opened cornerback Kyler Gordon's 21-day practice window, giving them three weeks to activate him off the physically unable to perform (PUP) list.
Gordon missed all of training camp, the preseason and the first three regular-season games with a calf injury. Last season he was limited to three contests by injuries before returning to play in both playoff games against the Packers and Rams.
Selected by the Bears in the second round of the 2022 draft out of Washington, Gordon appeared in 42 of a possible 51 games with 34 starts over his first three NFL seasons at cornerback and nickel, recording 207 tackles, five interceptions and 17 pass breakups.
Because he opened the season on the PUP list, Gordon must sit out the first four games, meaning he is not eligible to be activated until Monday.
More health news
The Bears held a walk-through Wednesday. But had they conducted a regular practice, left tackle Braxton Jones would not have participated due to a knee injury he sustained in Monday night's 27-7 win over the Eagles. Jones is considered week-to-week.
Left tackle Ozzy Trapilo continues to practice without restrictions as he ramps up for game action. The 2025 second-round pick was initially expected to miss all or most of the year with a knee injury he suffered in last season's playoff win over the Packers, but he returned to practice Aug. 16.
"He's getting closer," said coach Ben Johnson. "I don't know if this will be the week or not. He's part of that mix where we're talking about guys that we've got to evaluate over the course of the week."
Another one of those guys is cornerback Tyrique Stevenson, who played four snaps against the Eagles after being listed as questionable due to a hamstring injury he had sustained a week earlier versus the Vikings. In his absence, rookie Malik Muhammad started at cornerback and Cam Lewis lined up at nickel back before exiting with a hip injury.
"[Stevenson] was a little bit limited over the course of the week and so we just felt good going into that game with starting Malik on the outside and having Cam play more of the nickel role," Johnson said. "Each week is a little bit different. Honestly, we were a little surprised with how quickly Tyrique came back from the injury, so that was a good thing."
Upward trajectory
Muhammad, a fourth-round pick from Texas, registered five tackles and one quarterback hit while playing all 50 defensive snaps versus Philadelphia.
"He's a sticky player," Johnson said. "He continues to get better every single game, every single practice. We had a couple communication errors last week that we've got to clean up. But he's going to learn from that. He's going to continue to get better. We're really pleased through three games where he's at being able to contribute to our defense and our team in general. He's a competitor and we really like where he's at right now. He's on an upward trajectory."
Playing takeaway
Despite moving forward in 2026 without several players who helped the Bears lead the NFL with 33 takeaways last season, the defense is on a similar pace so far this year: The unit has six takeaways in three games, tied for third most in the league.
Against the Eagles, safety Dillon Thieneman and linebacker T.J. Edwards intercepted passes, while defensive end Austin Booker utilized a "Peanut Punch" to force a fumble that was recovered by safety Xavier Woods.
"I think the biggest [factor] is population to the ball, I really do," Edwards said. "On the fumble that Book popped out, that was him hustling to the ball after the play. Just take a shot, and that's something that we preach. We show clips every week about those things happening and to see it come to life was really cool.
"And then the interceptions work hand-in-hand with rush and coverage. It's about getting pressure and then it's also being sticky in coverage to make the quarterback get to his second read or force a throw."
