The other shoe fell Thursday in the matter of the Bears’ release of running back Skip Hicks.
The Tennessee Titans, still worried about who will back up All-Pro Eddie George, claimed Hicks off waivers.
One reason the Bears let Hicks go Wednesday was rookie Anthony Thomas appears ready. Thomas has been out with a knee injury since the Aug. 4 Cincinnati exhibition.
To replace Hicks, the Bears signed former Notre Dame running back Autry Denson.
“He gives us another dimension in our third running back that we didn’t have with Skip and that’s special teams contributions,” coach Dick Jauron said.
As for Hicks, the Bears’ release was was another in a string of NFL evaluations that say Hicks lacks the toughness to be a top tailback and run inside for the tough yards.
“I think he’s in the position where he wants to push and make a mark for himself,” said Titans general manager Floyd Reese.
“He had made some progress here in areas that he was deficient in but he still had some things he had to work on, so we had to make a decision based on the character of our team, [which is] to run inside and be very, very tough,” said running backs coach Earle Mosley.
Titans: Tennessee agreed to terms with All-Pro cornerback Samari Rolle on a new six-year contract worth $37.5 million. Negotiations had been interrupted last week when Rolle became upset over the slow pace of talks, but they resumed Aug. 31.
Chargers: Marcellus Wiley, San Diego’s $40 million defensive end, has a stress fracture in his left foot and will be out three to four weeks. Wiley was hurt in practice Wednesday and the stress fracture was diagnosed during tests Thursday, coach Mike Riley said.
Eagles: Cornerback Troy Vincent hyperextended his right knee during practice Thursday, and is questionable for Sunday’s opener against St. Louis.
