With Jeremy Langford likely out for several weeks with an ankle injury, the Bears signed former Lions running back Joique Bell to shore up their depleted running back corps. Bell posted the news on his Instagram account. The Bears play the Lions on Sunday at Soldier Field.
Bell, 30, averaged 4.0 yards per carry and scored 22 touchdowns in 60 games (15 starts) for the Lions from 2012-15. He was the Lions’ starter in Week 1 last season, but was ineffective and ended up in a complementary role — rushing for 311 yards on 90 carries (3.5 yards per carry) and four touchdowns. He had eight carries for 71 yards and a touchdown, including a 36-yard run, in a victory over the 49ers in Week 16.
Langford, a fourth-round draft pick from Michigan State in 2015 who became the starter this season after the Bears let Matt Forte go in free agency, suffered an ankle injury in Sunday night’s 31-17 loss to the Dallas Cowboys. He left the locker room with a walking boot on his right foot. He will miss 4-6 weeks, according to a report by ESPN’s Adam Schefter.
Third-year running back Ka’Deem Carey missed Sunday night’s game with a hamstring injury. Rookie Jordan Howard, a fifth-round draft pick from Indiana, replaced Langford against the Cowboys and rushed for 45 yards on nine carries — including a 36-yard run on his first carry.
The only other running back on the roster is Raheem Mostert, the Purdue product who was signed to the practice squad in Week 2 and promoted to the 53-man roster last week after Carey was injured.
