Tyrique

Stevenson

Kyler Gordon and Jaylon Johnson were both activated from injured reserve and will play, but the Bears are still down Stevenson after a hip injury and light their three linebackers who were all ruled out on Thursday. Robinson is dealing with a concussion. The other two players are healthy scratches.

Neither did Ruben Hyppolite (shoulder), LB Noah Sewell (elbow), or CB Tyrique Stevenson (hip) on the estimated report. The good news is that Kyler Gordon and Jaylon Johnson, both on IR, practiced in full on Tuesday. Still, down several linebackers, this could be a smash spot for the struggling Saquon Barkley on Black Friday.

It’s an aggravation of the issue that limited Stevenson in practice this week. It, of course, is not a good development for a majorly-injured Bears defense. That’s especially true since they have a short week for Week 13, playing the Eagles on Friday afternoon.

Johnson underwent core muscle surgery earlier this season and was placed on injured reserve, along with slot CB Kyler Gordon, who aggravated a hamstring strain suffered in August. Since last Friday, the Bears have designated both players to return. Gordon and No. 2 perimeter CB Tyrique Stevenson (hip/calf) remain limited at practice, but the unit’s health is significantly improving.

The early reports on Sunday were that Swift would suit up after being limited in practice throughout the week. Swift was not among the Bears players listed on the team’s inactive list that were released 90 minutes before kickoff, meaning he is good to go and should be in line for a busy day against a Ravens defense that has struggled out of the gate. While Swift is active, the Bears did declare TE Cole Kmet, QB Case Keenum, DB Tyrique Stevenson, RB Roschon Johsnon, LB Ruben Hyppolite II, and DL Chris Williams inactive for Sunday’s game.

Ditto Kyler Gordon, who popped up on the injury report late this week with a groin/calf designation and didn’t practice on Friday. Stevenson didn’t practice at any point this week and enters Week 9 as a question mark. If Lamar Jackson is healthy enough to go in Week 8, this would sure seem to set up as a big game for the MVP candidate against a Bears defense missing it’s top-three cornerbacks.

Stevenson was listed as doubtful so the news isn’t surprising. Velus Jones has been a healthy scratch for most of the year after switching to running back in the offseason. Left guard Teven Jenkins was listed as questionable but is good to go.

The Bears will already be without several members of their defense as safety Jaquan Brisker, defensive lineman Zacch Pickens, and corner Terell Smith have already been ruled out for Sunday’s contest. With Stevenson likely to miss Sunday’s game as well, the Bears’ secondary will likely rely heavily on Jaylon Jones and Elijah Hicks as his replacements. In addition to Stevenson, the Bears also listed Teven Jenkins as questionable with an ankle injury. Jenkins was limited in two of the team’s three practices this week.

Stevenson (6’0/198) first enrolled at Georgia where he spent two seasons and was cajoled by HC Kirby Smart to play the “Star” hybrid LB/S role to take advantage of his rocked-up frame and pugnacious play style. He wanted to play CB though, which prompted his transfer to Miami where he started all of his 21 games for the Canes at corner and achieved All-ACC status in each campaign. Stevenson held opponents to just 17 receptions on 40 targets (42.5% catch rate) while holding opponents to a very solid 78.4 NFL passer rating when targeted and earning a 79.5 PFF coverage grade. His aggressive play style led to some coverage breaks, as Stevenson allowed 20.8 yards per reception, but he was only flagged for one pass interference call in two seasons. He has elastic 32 3/8th” arms and ran an explosive 97th percentile 1.49s 10-yard split to go with 4.45s 40 speed (84th%) and a pair of 80th% jumps that add up to a projectable 8.93 RAS. Hip tightness can cause him to lag on breaks which opens up room for big plays, but Stevenson’s warrior mentality and ability to stay in phase at his size will help his NFL transition.

Stevenson (6'0/214) shared via his Twitter account that he would be coming back to the Canes in 2022, giving Miami not one but two key starters set to return next season following the announcement that starting left tackle Zion Nelson would also be returning. This past season, Stevenson started all but one game at cornerback for the Hurricanes, amassing 48 tackles to go with one interception and four pass breakups. According to Pro Football Focus, he received a coverage grade of 76.1, as he allowed just 25 receptions for 228 yards and two touchdowns on 49 targets, surrendering a quarterback rating of 69.1 to opposing quarterbacks on the year. As the Hurricanes begin to look forward to an exciting first season under new head coach Mario Cristobal, retaining starters like Stevenson can go a long way in the team’s success in his first season.