The Bears did the inevitable Tuesday, putting running back Tarik Cohen on injured reserve two days after he tore the anterior cruciate ligament in his right knee. Rookie running back Artavis Pierce was promoted from the practice squad to take his place.
“You love the kid,” coach Matt Nagy said of Cohen on Monday. “He worked hard to get to this point. He’ll be in our corner; we’ll be in his corner.”
Cohen was injured against the Falcons when he was hit while returning a punt. It marked the first serious injury of his three-and-a-half year career — Cohen had never even missed a practice.
The Bears signed Cohen to a contract extension the night before the team’s second game of the season. He was entering the final year of his four-year rookie deal.
“We feel very confident with the guys that we have in our room,” running backs coach Charles London said Monday. “Obviously, David [Montgomery] has had a good start to his season, and I expect him just to continue to get better and better each week. Cordarrelle [Patterson] has given us a lot at the running back position. He gets better and better each week as he gets more and more comfortable with his spot, with what we’ve been asking him to do. So, have no concerns there.”
The Bears also signed defensive end Terry Beckner and linebacker Sharif Finch to the practice squad.
