Bears safety Coby Bryant to miss most of the season after undergoing surgery
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670 The Score’s Matt Spiegel breaks down what to watch as Caleb Williams and the Bears prepare to open the preseason against the Browns on Saturday.
The Chicago Bears' defense had bad news get worse this week.
Coby Bryant, who was reportedly out for just two months at the most, underwent surgery and will miss most of the season, according to Ben Johnson.
What we know:
Johnson updated reporters Tuesday that Bryant will miss most, if not all, of the regular season.
Bryant had surgery and will be out for four to six months instead of eight to 10 weeks.
"Coby's the template for how we all want our team play," Johnson said on Tuesday. "We loved everything about him. Certainly takes us back a little bit, also provides opportunities to fill that void."
The Bears are setting their sights on Bryant's return to happen near the end of the season for a potential playoff run.
"He'll be back to help us at the end of the year," Johnson said.
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The backstory:
ESPN's Adam Schefter reported that Bryant was expected to be sidelined for eight to 10 weeks after suffering an injury in Monday's practice.
ESPN is reporting Bryant suffered a hyperextended knee, bone bruise and a small fracture during team drills. ESPN also reported Bryant did not need surgery.
Bryant signed a three-year deal with the Bears worth $40 million in free agency this offseason, coming over from Seattle where he won a Super Bowl.
This is the latest blow to the Bears' secondary room. Bryant was set to be a major addition to the Bears' defensive back room. Now, it's the latest update in a litany of injuries the Bears have seen at that position.
Gervarrious Owens was waived/injured after suffering and injury in practice. Terell Smith and Jaylon Jones have missed the last handful of practices. Dallis Flowers was placed on injured reserve.
In response, the Bears ended up signing four defensive backs in three days. It's all part of the war of attrition the NFL brings.
"The game that we play is a game of attrition," Bears defensive coordinator Dennis Allen said. "The more guys that you can get ready to go out there and perform and perform at a winning level, the better your team's going to be. So, at some point, every team faces some sort of adversity, injuries being one of them. I mean, quite frankly, you'd rather have to deal with those things now than have to deal with them in the middle of the season. So, it sucks when guys go down and they miss time. It's hard to build that chemistry and have the same group going together. And yet, it's an opportunity for a lot of other guys to go out there and show what they can do."