Chicago Bears notes: Teven Jenkins visits hospital after scary neck injury

CHICAGO – Remembering the proverbial human element can perhaps be lost when watching a football game. Watching an injury occur to a teammate in real-time can snap that perspective back into focus.

Teven Jenkins, the Bears’ starting right guard, suffered a neck injury in the first quarter of the Bears’ loss, 25-20, to the Philadelphia Eagles on Sunday. Jenkins was attended to by trainers on the field for several minutes before being placed on a backboard and carted off the field.

Head coach Matt Eberflus said Jenkins visited the hospital. He did not provide any further details other than to say that the initial news was encouraging.

“He was responsive,” Eberflus said. “We could see him moving his hands out there. Again, I don’t know much more than that. They just told me it’s encouraging. That’s all I got from the medical staff right now.”

The Bears players and coaches left the sideline and surrounded Jenkins while he was attended to. It was a sobering moment.

“It doesn’t really matter who it is, right? You hate to see that as a player,” said Michael Schofield III, who stepped in at right guard for Jenkins. “Anytime you see somebody stretchered off, it brings it back to all reality: The sport we play, the physicality of the sport. You hate to see it. Teven is a great kid.”

Left guard Cody Whitehair, a team captain, also has a unique perspective of knowing Jenkins up close.

“He’s a good person,” Whitehair said. “A hard-worker. Comes in and does things right every day, so anytime you see a guy like that that has to go on a backboard is never a good thing. From what we’ve heard so far, he’s doing OK. We’ll see.”

After Jenkins was cleared from the field, play resumed and players still had to move forward.

“I hate to say it, but you got to move on,” Schofield said. “You’ve got to refocus, regroup. You’ve got to refocus and get going again. That’s the sport we play.”

Kick or punt?: Instead of attempting what would’ve been a 49-yard field goal try prior to halftime facing the south end zone at Soldier Field, the Bears opted instead to take a delay of game penalty and punt back to the Eagles. Trenton Gill’s punt, in close quarters, netted all of 21 yards.

The Eagles drove 91 yards in about two minutes to score a touchdown. It gave them a lead, 10-6, at halftime.

Bears kicker Cairo Santos said that particular distance “wasn’t within the range with how cold and windy it was today.”

“[Based on how warm-ups went], either way, we capped it at 45 yards, our range, because the ball just wasn’t getting there,” Santos said. “I felt like I had a couple yards to stretch it in case we needed to swing it out of the ball park to make the ball get there. But, I think not in that situation.”

Prior to the kick opportunity, special teams coach Richard Hightower asked Santos if the range was still the same.

“I said: ‘Yeah, it’s really into the wind going south to that end zone,” Santos said.

Santos added that if the game were on the line, he would’ve tried a kick from that spot. But the Bears were more worried about field position.

Eberflus said after the game that he was fine with that decision.

Thin at receiver: The Bears were already thin at receiver Sunday. Darnell Mooney is out for the season with an ankle injury. Chase Claypool was ruled out Friday with a knee injury. N’Keal Harry was ruled out hours before the game with a back injury.

When Equanimeous St. Brown left the game with a concussion just minutes after the opening kickoff, the offense found itself in a tough spot. The only receivers remaining were Byron Pringle, Dante Pettis, Velus Jones Jr. and Nsimba Webster.

It wasn’t exactly an all-star cast for the quarterback to work with.

“It’s challenging, for sure,” QB Justin Fields said. “I think the main thing for that is just everybody being prepared, everybody know the game plan. Just everybody being on top of their stuff.”

Pringle led all receivers with 39 yards and a touchdown on two catches. He caught a 35-yard fourth-quarter touchdown from Fields.

For Jones, the rookie third-round draft pick, this was an opportunity for him to step up with so many players injured. Fumbles have been a recurring issue for him. On Sunday, he fumbled for the third time this season.

“I’m an aggressive player, so I’m just going to fight for yards,” Jones said.

That was the Bears’ only turnover on offense Sunday.