At practice during the voluntary OTAs on Tuesday, Chicago Bears rookie wide receiver Dazz Newsome broke his collarbone. He is scheduled to have surgery on Thursday and is expected to miss about eight weeks. Tom Pelissero broke the news first and also added he should be ready to go by the start of training camp.
Although it is good news that he should be fine by the time camp comes around, this injury will put the other receivers in the spotlight as their reps will be increased. Also, he was on track to compete for kickoff and punt return duties before the injury. The coaches might take it easy with him now and could look to other players to compete for those jobs. He was also building on his connection with Justin Fields as they worked together in rookie camp.
Newsome attended the rookie minicamp as well as the voluntary OTAs, which is where he suffered the injury. The injury means players like Riley Ridley, Javon Wims, Damiere Byrd, and Marquise Goodwin will see more reps in upcoming practices as Newsome comes back to full health.
Chicago Bears fans were excited to see what Dazz Newsome could add in 2021
Many fans are excited about Dazz Newsome as he can do many things as a weapon out of the slot or as a gadget player. He also offers great vision with the ball in his hands, which is one reason he could eventually be returning kicks. He would most likely have a limited role to start the season, but as we saw with Darnell Mooney last year, Matt Nagy will reward stellar rookie play. It will be interesting to see how he comes back and works to move up the depth chart in the receiver room.
It is unfortunate he will be missing out on the reps he would be getting in OTAs and future minicamps as he prepares for training camp. As a rookie, these are very important stepping stones to get ready for the speed of the NFL. Although it is a setback, the injury to Dazz Newsome is not super serious and he should recover well. It is estimated he will be healthy by the time training camp starts. Until then, look to see which receivers are getting more reps as they fill in for the injured rookie.