BOURBONNAIS — It was good sign when Bears long-snapper Patrick Mannelly rode to Olivet Nazarene dining hall on a bike.
The longtime Bear said he’s planning on being ready for the regular-season opener and was in good spirits when it came to talking about his cracked rib.
“It was poor field awareness on my part and got it,” Mannelly, 38, said of the big hit that injured him on Friday against the Carolina Panthers. “I’ve gotten hit like that four, five or six times. It was not the shot that hurt, it was the pain afterward that hurt that most.
“Normally, you get hit like that and you kind of laugh because everybody is going to laugh at you on tape. So I started laughing and then when I got up, I felt the pain in my ribs, and I was like ‘Uh, oh, something’s wrong.’ ”
Linebacker James Anderson filled for Mannelly against the Panthers. Mannelly said he thought Anderson was “excellent.”
“He’s gotten kind of limited reps during practice and did a great job,” Mannelly said.
Mannelly, who said he’s still sore, won’t be practicing for some time, so the Bears signed long-snapper Brandon Hartson. The undrafted rookie from Houston took part in practice on Sunday.
But Mannelly said there’s “no doubt” that he’ll be ready when the Bears host the Cincinnati Bengals on Sept. 8 to open the regular season.
“It’s not as bad I thought it would be,” he said. “Some other people with them can’t move, can’t laugh, can’t sneeze. I haven’t sneezed yet, but I can laugh OK and everything’s all right.”
