Bears guard Chilo Rachal has walked away from the team.
The Bears announced today that they have placed Rachal on the reserve/left squad list for what the team described only as “personal reasons.”
Family issues have affected Rachal in the past: When he announced that he was leaving USC to enter the 2008 NFL draft, he said it was so that he could take care of his parents, who were in poor health. And in 2010, during his third season with the 49ers, Rachal was benched after he skipped a practice for the birth of his son. But there have been no recent reports that would indicate any issues in Rachal’s family that would cause him to quit on the Bears.
Rachal, who has started the last eight games for the Bears, got some unwelcome attention on Monday night against his former team: He had two holding penalties, and he also recovered a fumble in the Bears’ end zone and awkwardly tried to throw the ball forward to avoid a safety. Replays showed that Rachal’s knee was down when he grabbed the ball, so it was a safety.
To fill the spot on the 53-man roster, the Bears called up offensive lineman James Brown from the practice squad. Chris Spencer, who started the first two games of this season before being benched in favor of Rachal, will presumably go back into the starting lineup in Rachal’s absence.
