It wasn’t a good night for the Bears. First things first: It appears wide receiver Michael Calvin could be out for awhile after suffering what looked like a potentially serious knee injury during practice tonight. Calvin was running a route his knee gave out as he planted his foot. He crumbled to the turf and was in some serious pain. After being attended to on the field for a few minutes by the training staff, he was helped gingerly to the sideline. It didn’t appear Calvin could put any weight whatsoever on his leg.
Calvin is going to have an MRI, but coach Jeff Tedford said “the initial report doesn’t look favorable.” We’ll probably know more about his prognosis tomorrow.
It’s kind of been a lost season for Calvin, who was expected to be the Bears’ top receiver this season. A sprained toe suffered near the end of training camp has hampered his production all season. He has eight catches for 103 yards.
Also, it appears kicker David Seawright won’t play Saturday at Arizona after suffering a strained groin Tuesday at practice. Tedford called Seawright “doubtful.” Giorgio Tavecchio practiced field goals Wednesday and Tedford said both he and Jordan Kay are in the mix to replace Seawright against the Wildcats.
There was another troubling sight on the field — defensive end Tyson Alualu walking around with the help of one crutch. But Tedford said after practice that Alualu has a leg infection that is being treated with antibiotices, and he expects Alualu to play Saturday. Tedford said Alualu had a fever Tuesday and experienced swelling in his leg.
That’s the bad news. Here’s the good news for the Bears: Tedford all but said tailback Jahvid Best will play Saturday. Best practiced in full capacity for the second straight day and appears ready to return after a one-game absence due to a dislocated left elbow.
“I believe he will play,” Tedford said. “We put him through a lot of drills to test it. I think he’s feeling better and more comfortable.”
Tedford said Best wouldn’t be limited but did say he didn’t expect Best to return kicks, at least not at the outset. Best leads the country in all-purpose yards (215.5 ypg).
No news on the quarterback front. Both Nate Longshore and Kevin Riley once again split first team reps equally Wednesday. As he did for the Arizona State game, I wouldn’t expect Tedford to name a starter until just before the game.
