Bears Place Cole Kmet on IR, Activate Montez Sweat
- Chicago Bears tight end Cole Kmet will miss the remainder of the season due to a right knee injury sustained late in the fourth quarter of a 30-24...
- The injury occurred near the Bears' sideline after Kmet hauled in a nine-yard pass during the final moments of Thursday night's win.
- Quarterback Caleb Williams expressed deep frustration over the injury to the team's longest-tenured player.
Chicago Bears tight end Cole Kmet will miss the remainder of the season due to a right knee injury sustained late in the fourth quarter of a 30-24 victory against the Patriots, the Chicago Sun-Times reported Friday. Medical testing Friday morning confirmed the worst fears for the team, halting a campaign in which Kmet had recorded 10 catches for 87 yards while serving as the offense’s primary blocking tight end for the league’s top rushing attack.
Knee Injury Ends Tight End Season
The injury occurred near the Bears’ sideline after Kmet hauled in a nine-yard pass during the final moments of Thursday night’s win. Shocked teammates crowded around the field before medical staff carted him to the locker room. Selected in the second round of the 2020 draft alongside teammate Jaylon Johnson, Kmet holds a contract running through next season with a $15.4 million salary cap hit against a $5.4 million dead cap charge. Head coach Ben Johnson acknowledged the severe impact of the loss, stating He’s going to be sorely missed.
Really, he’s Chicago,
Johnson added. He’s been here his whole life and he’s a big part of our heartbeat. So it stinks. It does. I hate it for him, I hate it for his teammates as well.
Locker Room And Roster Adjustments
Quarterback Caleb Williams expressed deep frustration over the injury to the team’s longest-tenured player. I don’t have the words to describe what Cole is to me, what Cole is to this team, this organization,
Williams said Thursday night. He’s been through it. And it’s challenging. He’s tough. And I’ll be with him. I’ll be right there with him through every step of whatever the injury is.
To fill the vacant roster spot after placing Kmet on injured reserve Friday, the Bears activated defensive end Montez Sweat. Sweat returned from a two-drug suspension stemming from testing positive for diuretics or other performance-enhancing drug-masking agents. The Chicago defense managed seven sacks during Sweat’s two-game absence after logging 11 sacks across the first five games of the season with him on the field.
Coaching Staff Plans Offensive Shifts
Ben Johnson utilizes multiple tight ends more frequently than most coaches across the league and intends to maintain that scheme despite the personnel loss. Rookie third-round pick Sam Roush is slated for increased playing time following steady improvement in practice. The coaching staff also weighs promoting either Stephen Carlson or Qadir Ismail from the practice squad, alongside an unconventional proposal to utilize swing tackle Ozzy Trapilo as a third tight end in heavy jumbo packages. He was consistently one of the highest-graded players on our offense, week-in and week-out,
Ben Johnson said regarding Kmet. He will be missed, there’s no question about it. But in terms of what we do, it’s not gonna change a whole lot. The train keeps rolling along. Someone else has to step up.