N’Keal Harry ankle injury: How long will the Bears wide receiver be out?
Less than a month after being traded to the Chicago Bears, it looks like the road back into the lineup for the wide receiver may be a little longer
After going in the first round of the 2019 draft to the New England Patriots, the former Arizona State standout struggled to fit into Bill Belichick’s system. He suffered an ankle injury in the opening weeks of his rookie year and manage to appear in just seven games that season.
Just over a year ago, looking for a “fresh start”, he requested a trade and while that didn’t happen, he had an injury defined season again in 2021. Last month, he was traded to the Chicago Bears and that same injury has come back to haunt him.
Leaving the practice early on Saturday, the Bears have reported that he is suffering a “high ankle sprain” and while there was no indication from the team as to how long he would be out, these types of injuries typically fall into the six-week recovery cycle.
It would mean the Harry would miss at least the first two regular season weeks if that model holds true. With the team waiting on a specialist to confirm the severity of the injury, Coach Eberflus is keeping his cards close to his chest.
“I saw the play and I don’t really know much from there. We’re obviously going to do the evaluation and then once I get that, we can get it back to you. And if it’s longer situation, we’ll let you know what it is. If it’s day-by-day, we’ll say that, too.”
Together with Byron Pringle and Velus Jones, Jr, the Bears are now down three wide receivers with the season yet to get underway. It has been reported that they are carrying one of the easiest schedules in the NFL, and they will absolutely need to capitalize on that if they are to make any headway at all toward the back end of the season.
As for the fresh start that Harry was hoping for, it looks like he will have to wait and see, just like the rest of us.