The Washington Commanders are not going to be at full strength on offense when they face the Chicago Bears in Week 6, thanks to two major injuries at wide receiver.
NFL insider Mike Garafolo reported that Commanders wide receivers Terry McLaurin and Noah Brown will not play against the Bears. McLaurin was not expected to play after not practicing all week with his quad injury. Brown has been limited in practice this week with his groin/knee injury.
The Commanders are entering the Bears game with a 3-2 record and coming off a convincing 27-10 win over the Los Angeles Chargers. All Chicago fans remember what happened the last time the Bears faced Washington a season ago.
Bears getting a big boost in the secondary with McLaurin and Brown out
Brown ruined the Bears fan base as he was the man who caught the Hail Mary touchdown pass last year. He finished with three receptions for 73 yards and a touchdown in the win for the Commanders.
McLaurin is one of the elite receivers in the NFL and has been a consistent performer for Washington. Last year's Commanders-Bears game was the first time in four meetings that McLaurin posted over 100 yards on Chicago's defense. He finished that contest with five catches for 125 yards to lead the team.
Washington will have to turn to Deebo Samuel and Zach Ertz as their top pass catchers for the game. That limits what Commanders quarterback Jayden Daniels will be able to do in the passing game.
This is a massive update for the Bears as they are still dealing with Jaylon Johnson being out with his injury. Kyler Gordon has already told the media he's going to play against the Commanders, leaving the starting cornerbacks on the Bears being Gordon, Tyrique Stevenson, and Nahshon Wright.
Don't be surprised if the Commanders lean more on their number one rushing attack to carry most of the load on offense. Chicago's defense must be ready to step up and load up the box to commit to the run.
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Passing the football on the Bears will be tough for the Commanders, but that running game for Washington will make or break Chicago's defense.