A Chicago Bears training camp that has been dampened by injuries was given an extra layer of buzzkill when wide receiver Luther Burden suffered a groin injury. He avoided a more serious injury, with the expectation that he will be ready for Week 1 against the Carolina Panthers, but soft tissue injuries can be tricky.
There have been visible positive signs with Burden, though. First, despite some light rain, he got some light on-field work in before the preseason opener against the Cleveland Browns. This week, while he obviously didn't participate, he was spotted at Thursday's joint practice before the second preseason game against the Cincinnati Bengals.
Why is Burden being spotted on the sideline at the joint practice noteworthy?
Two other notable injured Bears players, quarterback Tyson Bagent and running back Kyle Monangai, didn't travel with the team to Cincinnati. They'd be no more likely than Burden to take part in the joint practice or play in Saturday night's game, which is to say they wouldn't have, but they stayed back in Chicago while he didn't.
Bagent and Monangai also suffered their injuries more recently than Burden suffered his, so that's a factor, along with the nature and severity of the injuries. Still, it's an interesting difference in travel plan for injured players, whether it really means a darn thing or not.
The Bears will be cautious with Burden to ensure he's ready for Week 1, and all signs point to that early optimism coming true. It's also fair to say anything firm won't come from head coach Ben Johnson until it absolutely has to, so any updates will have to come from elsewhere for now.
Rome Odunze brings a Luther Burden injury update to Bears fans
Bears wide receiver Rome Odunze spoke to reporters before the team left town for the joint practice and the game against the Bengals. Asked what is missed most without Burden on the practice field, and after lauding the energy he brings, Odunze eventually got to something of an update on the second-year receiver's recovery status.
"We definitely miss Lu out there", Odunze said. "I know his recovery is going well, so excited to get him back out there."
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The groin injury has only slowed down the breakout hype train for Burden for this season, not stopped it entirely. Odunze essentially confirmed all the positive signs about his recovery, though he occasionally dabbles in injury updates unrelated to himself. Let's just hope he's right about this one, compared to what he said about Coby Bryant.
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