Players in the NFL do not lose their jobs because of injury. However, they do sometimes lose them because another player takes advantage of the opportunity created by that injury. That scenario may be unfolding within the Bears.
Running back James Allen remained out of practice again Tuesday with a hip flexor, which he sustained in one of his first plays back in Platteville training camp after missing time with an ankle injury. In his absence, former Washington Redskin Skip Hicks has moved to the brink of taking the No. 1 tailback job after rushing for 48 yards Saturday night at Tennessee.
On defense, former Notre Dame linebacker Bobbie Howard has a chance of winning the starting outside job that has been Warrick Holdman’s since mid-1999.
Holdman has returned to practice after minor knee surgery during camp. But Howard took over the No. 1 job last week against Tennessee and played well enough that there now is a potential decision once Holdman is deemed ready to return.
Coach Dick Jauron does not automatically return an injured player to the starting lineup if that player’s replacement is performing better than the starter was.
Last year linebacker Rosevelt Colvin injured his knee, then could not get back on the field because Sean Harris was playing so well in his place.
Hicks struggled early in training camp, particularly with his pass blocking. He also has been slow to hit holes with the power the Bears want from a 230-pounder with 4.4 speed in the 40. But he now is the only back with at least a 4-yard average (4.4) this exhibition season, and coaches are seeing changes in Hicks’ approach to the game.
“Skip has really done some outstanding things on the field,” Jauron said. “The big-play potential, you can see it and that’s what we went after him for, that’s what we brought him in for. With his ability, he just needs to be more consistent with his running.
“I like the way he’s improved his practice habits as far as finishing runs. He’s a bright guy and I believe he wants to do it. He certainly will have a great opportunity again this Saturday [against Kansas City].”
Allen, who has not carried the ball in the first two exhibition games, has not practiced fully in a couple of weeks.
The Bears haven’t had a 100-yard rusher since Allen gained 163 yards against Baltimore on Dec. 6, 1998. But Allen won’t get another chance against the Ravens on opening day without significant practice time.
“He’s going to have to practice to play,” Jauron said. “I definitely would not want to go in to play the world champions with a running back that hadn’t been hit in training camp. We’re not going to do that because we know what kind of game that’s going to be. We’d like him to have a couple of weeks to get that done.”
Jauron was reluctant to let Allen on the field in 1999 when Allen missed time twice with injuries in training camp. Jauron did not trust that Allen would be ready to hold on to the ball without having been subjected to contact in practice first. Allen cannot rush back too soon from his injury, yet the better Hicks plays, the more the chance of a change.
“I was in a similar situation a couple years ago and I came back when I wasn’t really healthy and that hurt the team more than it helped the team,” Allen said. “I’m trying to be careful about what I’m doing as far as practice.
“I don’t think the coaching staff is losing patience.”
The 5-foot-10-inch, 226-pound Howard is playing with the No. 1 defense because of the injury to Holdman, “but that doesn’t mean that he couldn’t take the position from Warrick if it was warranted,” Jauron said.
“He’s played very well in our first two exhibition games and some of the time he’s played well hasn’t been at that position, but at the [middle] linebacker spot. If you measured him and weighed him, you wouldn’t say he fits the prototype of the NFL linebacker.
“But they come in all shapes and sizes, and he’s shown he wants to play and he’s smart. I like him on game day, like talking to him when he comes to the sideline, like the look in his eye.”
