Williams out after back surgery
So much for first-round draft choice Chris Williams winning the starting left tackle job in time for the season opener.
Williams underwent surgery for a herniated disc in his lower back early Thursday morning and will be out indefinitely. Bears spokesman Scott Hagel said the team plans to keep Williams on the final 53-man roster but had no timetable for his return.
The injury occurred early on the second day of practice, July 24, and was initially treated as back spasms. After the muscle injury subsided and Williams still showed no improvement, further tests revealed the herniated disc. The Bears compared Williams' injury to one that cornerback Charles Tillman suffered at the end of the 2006 season. He wasn't cleared for a full return for more than three months.
Even if the 6-foot-6, 312-pound Williams returns in a few weeks, which is the best-case scenario, he'll have missed all but the first 2 ½ hours of training-camp practice plus all four preseason games.
The Bears' plan was for Williams to move into the left tackle spot during the preseason and be an opening-day starter on Sept. 7 at Indianapolis. Now it appears veteran backup John St. Clair will be the Bears' left tackle, with journeyman Terrence Metcalf at guard, although he underwent arthroscopic knee surgery Tuesday and did not play in Thursday night's preseason opener.
Fred Miller.. Havent we seen enough of that train wreck. They are going to be awful and have another high draft pick next year to waste.. Only the Bears would chance taking him so high after everyone knew he had back problems in College. Thats right because they are smarter than everyone else..
GREAT JOB Angelo..You need to get fired!
Over the top? I don't think so. This was a horrible offensive line last year (due to negligence by the personel people) and it's only going to get worse this year. We're most likely looking at the worst offense in the NFL, and barring a time machine the defense just isn't going to come close to overcoming that handicap.
Add all this to the fact that they are in talks with bringing back Fred "the turnstile" Miller. Yeah, at least early on it looks like it's going to be a long year.