Injured cornerbacks Jaylon Johnson and Buster Skrine will not play against the Jaguars on Sunday at TIAA Bank Field in Jacksonville, Florida, giving the Bears a second consecutive test of their depth in the secondary.
Johnson, a rookie from Utah who has 15 pass break-ups, will miss his second consecutive game because of a shoulder injury. Skrine, a veteran nickel cornerback, will miss his third consecutive game with a concussion.
Second-year cornerback Duke Shelley, who started for Johnson last week against the Vikings, and rookie Kindle Vildor, who played for Skrine, are expected to fill those roles against the Jaguars. Shelley is questionable with knee and foot injuries but is expected to play.
“They’re both locked in the right way,they both have the right mindset,” coach Matt Nagy said. “They’ve had a good week of practice. There’s going to be times where they make mistakes. It’s how you rebound from that, and they’re both mentally locked in that way.”
Hicks, Mack, Robinson questionable
Defensive end Akiem Hicks (ankle), outside linebacker Khalil Mack (shoulder), wide receiver Allen Robinson (hamstring) and nose tackle Bilal Nichols (knee) practiced on a limited basis Friday and are listed as questionable but are expected to play against the Jaguars.
Pro Bowl kick returner Cordarrelle Patterson (knee) did not practice and is questionable. Safety Deon Bush (foot) and defensive end Mario Edwards Jr. (hamstring) also are questionable. Tight end -Demetrius Harris (foot) is doubtful.
Return of Glennon?
The Jaguars will start either Gardner Minshew or former Bears quarterback Mike Glennon. Only five offensive players remain from the last game Glennon started with the Bears in Week 4 in 2017: quarterback Mitch Trubisky, left guard Cody Whitehair, left tackle Charles Leno, right tackle Bobby Massie and running back Tarik Cohen.
“There’s not a whole lot of guys left that I played with, but there’s a handful,” Glennon told Jacksonville reporters this week. “Anytime you’re going against your former team, there’s always some added excitement. That’s kind of natural to see, and we’ll see what happens.”
Marrone on A-Rob: ‘I love him’
Jaguars coach Doug Marrone was the team’s offensive line coach in 2015, when -Allen Robinson had a breakout season with 80 receptions for 1,400 yards and a league-leading 14 touchdowns. Robinson played just one game for Marrone when Marrone was a head coach in 2017 before suffering a season-ending knee injury. But Marrone has fond memories of the Bears wide receiver.
“I love him,” Marrone said. “He was a big-time playmaker. He wanted the football when it was crunch time. You wanted to get him the football.
“The biggest thing I’ve always admired is that he’d knock the crap out of you in the run game. He wasn’t afraid to get dirty.
“I had a good relationship with him. I -really thought he was a heck of a player. I’m not surprised that he’s playing at a very high level, and I think he can play at a high level for a long time.”
