Bear Essentials

Cornerback Nate Vasher, who said after Friday's practice: “I expect to be out there 100 percent,” was 100 percent inactive on Sunday.

Vasher suffered a dislocated thumb in Week Four but finished the game and then had a minor surgical procedure but returned to the practice field Friday after sitting out Wednesday and Thursday.

“I had full practice and I’m looking forward to it,” Vasher said Friday of today's game at Detroit's Ford Field.

Instead Corey Graham started in place of Vasher, as he had done in Week Three when the Bears preferred going with a bigger more physical lineup.

It wouldn't surprise me to see backup running back Kevin Jones play a more prominent role Sunday against his former Lions teammates.

Jones is anxious to put on a good show at his former home field and prove that the Lions gave up on him too soon following last season's knee surgery. He was drafted in the first round by the Lions in 2004 (30th overall) and rushed for 1,133 yards as a rookie, but he was released after the 2007 season..

Jones got 13 carries in the Bears' season opener and gained 45 yards, but he's gotten just 7 carries since them for 26 yards. He's looked surprisingly healthy for someone less than a year removed from a torn ACL.

Three-time Pro Bowl defensive tackle Tommie Harris, who signed a four-year, $40 million contract extension prior to the start of the season has been suspended by the Bears for this week's game for an unspecified breach of team rules.

Harris did not play last week because of lingering effects from the off-season arthroscopic surgery on his left knee, and he has rarely practiced at all since the start of the season. In the three games he did play, Harris was a virtual non-factor, recording just 2 tackles plus an additional tackle for loss. Harris has not practiced at all this week.

I've harped on this before, but I really believe the Bears need to cut back on rookie RB Matt Forte's workload of they want him to be effective in December.

Forte leads the NFL in rushing attempts with 92 – 6 more than the Chiefs' Larry Johnson – and he's also caught 18 passes, giving him a league-high 110 touches. At the quarter pole, it's easy to do the math: 368 carries and 440 touches. That's a heavy burden for a 22-year old.

It's not as if the Bears don't have any other options. Kevin Jones is a viable alternative who could at least provide an occasional breather for Forte, and whatever happened to getting a few touches a game for Garrett Wolfe?

1. New York Giants (3-0): Last year's No. 1 is now this year's No. 1 after NFC East foes Dallas and Philadelphia both lost while they enjoyed an off week in preparation for what should be an easy win at home vs. Seahawks. Last week: 4.

2. Tennessee Titans (4-0): Best start in 48-year franchise history thanks to opportunistic group that scored 21 points off 4 turnovers. Expect a physical slugfest when they visit the Ravens this week. Last week: 3.

3. Pittsburgh Steelers (3-1): Offense is struggling with multiple injuries at RB, and QB Ben Roethlisberger is hardly playing like a $100 million man, but defense has been stout enough to pick up the slack. Tough trip to Jacksonville up next. Last week: 5.

Euphoria over the 24-20 victory Sunday night was somewhat tempered on Monday by the injuries to leading receiver Brandon Lloyd (knee) and cornerback Charles Tillman (shoulder), in addition to questions about the health of defensive tackle Tommie Harris' left knee.

“We’re evaluating them, hoping they’ll be ready to go this week and all of that,” coach Lovie Smith said unconvincingly late Monday afternoon. “Nathan Vasher also had a wrist/thumb injury. Hopefully he’ll be ready to go also.”

Smith seemed confident that Tillman wouldn't be out long.

“He hurt his shoulder last night,” Lovie said, “and luckily it wasn’t anything serious.”

Sometimes shopping the bargain racks really pays off.

After three weeks it seems the Bears made the right decision by declining to get into a bidding war for Bernard Berrian, who cost the Vikings $42 million over six years. Instead the Bears signed Redskins castoff Brandon Lloyd for $645,000, the league minimum plus a $40,000 bonus.

So far, Lloyd has far outperformed Berrian. While neither offense has been very productive this season, Lloyd has still managed to catch 13 passes for 216 yards and 1 touchdown, while Berrian has 6 catches for 117 yards and no touchdowns.

If he maintains the same pace for 16 games, Lloyd will finish with 70 receptions for 1,152 yards, which would be the fifth-highest yardage in franchise history.

Tommie Harris isn't helping the Bears in his present condition, whatever that is. It's difficult to tell, since the Bears have a policy of shrouding even the tiniest injury in secrecy.

Harris has rarely practiced at full speed since the season opener, and he has made little impact in any of the first three games. He says he's healthy enough to practice, but he's played like someone who either has a legitimate injury or is struggling to overcome the mental aspect of knee surgery.

So why not shut him down for a week or two? Give his surgical left knee a chance to get well and maybe, when he returns, the Bears will have some semblance of the disruptive force who was voted to the past three Pro Bowls.

Sure, rookie running back Matt Forte is off to an excellent start.

His 409 yards from scrimmage are second in the NFL only to Frank Gore's 412.

But it might be time to start thinking about cutting back a bit on the 22-year-old Forte's workload and using veteran Kevin Jones a little more. Jones got 13 carries in the season opener but has touched the ball just four times since.

Forte leads the NFL in rushing attempts with 73, which, over the course of an entire season, works out to 389 carries (and 1,621 yards). But no one in the NFL last season carried the ball more times than the Redskins' Clinton Portis, who had 325. Only six players in the league carried more than 300 times.

1. Dallas Cowboys (3-0): The RB tandem of Marion Barber and rookie Felix Jones may be the best in the game. They combined for 218 rushing yards last week and they've help make the Cowboys the NFC's highest scoring team. Last week: 1.

2. Philadelphia Eagles (2-1): Bad news for Bears. Not only can they light up the scoreboard, they proved last week that they could play dominating defense, getting 9 sacks with a relentless rush and allowing just 180 yards vs. the Steelers. Last week: 2.

3. Tennessee Titans (3-0): Jeff Fisher's team is allowing less than 10 points per game, and they look to be better off with veteran Kerry Collins replacing erratic and immature Vince Young at quarterback. Last week: 7.