Chicago Bears rule out Teven Jenkins; has Jenkins played his last game with Chicago?

LAKE FOREST – The Chicago Bears ruled out offensive lineman Teven Jenkins for the season finale on Sunday in Green Bay. Jenkins will miss the game due to a calf injury. Jenkins also missed last week’s game against Seattle due to the same injury.

Additionally, the Bears ruled out running back Travis Homer (hamstring) and safety Elijah Hicks (ankle/foot). Everybody else on the roster is available to play in Sunday’s game.

Cornerback Kyler Gordon, receiver Rome Odunze and offensive tackle Larry Borom have all been sick this week, but all were full participants in practice on Friday and are expected to play.

Jenkins will finish his season with 14 starts, a career high for the fourth-year pro. Jenkins is in the final year of his four-year rookie contract, so it’s possible he played his last game as a member of the Bears.

Jenkins said last summer that the Bears had not offered a contract extension. At the time, he noted that his No. 1 goal in 2024 was to “stay healthy.”

When healthy, Jenkins has been one of the team’s best offensive linemen over the last few seasons. But injuries have severely limited him.

The Bears drafted Jenkins with a second-round pick in 2021, trading up in order to take the lineman out of Oklahoma State. This was when former general general manager Ryan Pace was still in charge. Pace envisioned Jenkins as the team’s left tackle of the future.

Unfortunately, a back injury caused him to miss almost his entire rookie season. He didn’t make his NFL debut until December 2021.

When the Bears fired Pace and head coach Matt Nagy a month later, Jenkins had to prove himself to a new coaching staff. After he was initially buried on the depth chart at tackle during training camp 2022, Jenkins moved to guard and found a home at the position.

Still, injuries limited him in every season. He started 38 games over the course of four seasons.

Asked about Jenkins' 2024 season, interim head coach Thomas Brown noted that – much like the offensive line as a whole – there were some ups and downs.

It’s always an unfortunate part to have guys who have injuries that can’t finish. That’s always tough as an athlete, obviously having been around it through my own experiences, but also seeing other guys go through it."

—  Thomas Brown, Bears interim head coach

“Like the entire group, it’s been up and down as far as the entire team goes, as far as the offense goes,” Brown said. “There’s been some bright moments, there’s been some not so bright moments. It’s always an unfortunate part to have guys who have injuries that can’t finish. That’s always tough as an athlete, obviously having been around it through my own experiences, but also seeing other guys go through it. But it’s also added motivation to be better for the future.”

Jenkins is eligible to become a free agent in March. It’s unclear whether the Bears will attempt to re-sign him, but general manager Ryan Poles could have done so at any time this season and he has not.

It’s entirely possible Jenkins has played his last game with the Bears.