Marquess Wilson has been in this position before. Too often.
The 24-year-old wide receiver, a hoped-for nugget from the seventh round of the 2013 draft, has been unable to play more than 11 games in any of his four Bears season. Worse, the nine he missed in 2014, the five last year and the nine this year were all because of injuries. The most recent was a fractured foot that was a repeat of the injury that wiped out the end of his 2015 season right when it appeared to be taking off with two 4-catch games, including a 102-yard afternoon against the eventual Super Bowl champion Denver Broncos.
Because of his forced absences it has been difficult for Wilson to make a spot for himself within the offense. But over the past two seasons he had caught at least one pass in 16 of the 18 games he played and last year was averaging 16.6 yards per catch on his 28 receptions — the highest ypc figure for other than a fringe receiver since Johnny Knox’s 19.6 in 2011.
Then last June during a seemingly innocent non-contact OTA session, Wilson re-fractured his foot, underwent surgery and started the season on the PUP (physically unable to perform) list. That meant a minimum of six weeks watching as his teammates struggled, and being sidelined in what for him is the season preceding his first shot at free agency.
“That’s the worst part about it, just standing out there, not being able to do anything,” Wilson said, “but wanting to be out there baaaaad.”
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The Bears now need him baaad, with Kevin White still on injured reserve and now Alshon Jeffery done for four games with a PED suspension. Wilson was moved from PUP to the active roster this week and “I’m crazy-excited, just being able to go back on the field,” he said.
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But how far back he is after such an enforced layoff, particularly one which involved an injury affecting his ability to run, is problematic. The last time he caught an NFL pass was last Nov. 26 in the win at Green Bay.
It's one of those things where we'll just have to see,” said offensive coordinator Dowell Loggains. “I don't have a crystal ball. It's going to be hard until we get him out there and he gets to play and we'll find out then.
“The first time he gets in a game it's going to be a long time since he's played in a game, so it's going to be a challenge for him. When he is ready, we'll limit what the role we give him at that point. The other guys, with the injuries and the other things occurring in the room, the rest of the guys have to step up.”
For Wilson, the injuries are never a good thing but sometimes they prolong a career a bit because the player is not taking the beating that is the NFL season.
“I’ve always said and felt that everything happens for a reason,” Wilson said. “It’s out of my control what happens. I mean, you have control to a certain point but ultimately it’s not in your control.
“So there’s no point in being down about it.”