Bears put starting right tackle Elijah Wilkinson on Reserve/COVID-19

Earlier this morning the Chicago Bears announced that they were placing reserve linebacker Caleb Johnson on the Reserve/COVID-19 list, and then moments ago they announced a second player going on the list, starting right tackle Elijah Wilkinson.

Teams are allowed to make COVID related roster moves on game day, so the Bears activated offensive lineman Arlington Hambright from their practice squad to face the Tampa Bay Buccaneers at 3:25 p.m. CT today.

Wilkinson was the fill in for Germain Ifedi, who was placed on injured reserve a couple weeks ago, so the Bears will be on the third man up at right tackle. Look for either Lachavious Simmons or Alex Bars to get the start. Bars has been getting plenty of reps as a 6th o-lineman the last couple weeks, so if that was part of the game plan then it’ll probably be Simmons with the ones today.

Once the Bears announce their inactive players for the game (approximately 90 minutes before kickoff) we’ll share those here at WCG.

This is Wilkinson’s second stint on the Bears Reserve/COVID-19 list, with the first coming back in August.

If his thinking still hasn’t changed then it’s possible the Bears could be without him for 10 days minimum. Rookie tackle Larry Borom has been on injured reserve more than three weeks, so once his high ankle sprain allows him to practice he can be activated.