Bears' rookie linebacker makes 9 tackles in third NFL start

In his third NFL start Sunday, rookie inside linebacker Nick Kwiatkoski led the Chicago Bears with 9 solo tackles, including 2 for lost yardage, according to pressbox statistics.

He also was credited with 2 pass breakups.

After filling in for injured Danny Trevathan in Week 3, the fourth-round pick from West Virginia has started the past two games for Jerrell Freeman, who's serving a four-game PED suspension.

"He's gotten better in every outing," coach John Fox said. "I flash back all the way to Dallas, when Danny first got hurt. He stepped in and I think he's grown a lot through those game experiences."

The 6-foot-2, 242-pound Kwiatkoski got off to a slow start because of a hamstring injury in training camp. But with Trevathan on injured reserve and Freeman out for two more games, he's making up for lost time.

"It's just a comfort level," Fox said, "not only with what we're doing, but how to prepare (for what) opponents doing, so that ultimately you're trying to play faster. With those experiences and that preparation, he's playing faster."

Walking the walk:

Wide receiver Josh Bellamy got his first start of the season Sunday despite dropping the potential game-winning TD pass in the end zone a week earlier.

He led all players with 4 catches and 93 receiving yards, but also dropped 2 passes that would have given him at least another 50 yards.

"You'd take 20 of him," coach John Fox said. "He has a huge heart. He's one of the better special teams players in the league. He works very, very hard. We leaned on him last year (when injuries thinned the ranks), and he got some playing time at receiver. There were some big plays he made (Sunday)."

As a well-known trash talker, the 6-foot, 211-pound Bellamy left himself open to some verbal blowback, but he knows it's the price you pay. "It comes with the territory," he said. "If you can give it out, you've got to be able to receive it. You've got to be able to take it, you've got to roll with the punches. Like Coach Fox says, 'Tough times don't last, tough people do. Just got to keep moving forward."

Bellamy has been one of the Bears' top special teams players since last season, when he was second on the team with 10 tackles.

Snappy answer:

After practicing all of last week, cornerback Kyle Fuller was not added to the 53-man roster from injured reserve for Sunday's game, so coach John Fox was asked if the former starter was close to being back.

"It's like horseshoes and hand grenades," Fox said. "Close doesn't really count."

Coming and going:

Quarterback Jay Cutler (shoulder) was officially placed on injured reserve, linebacker Lamin Barrow was waived from injured reserve and quarterback Josh Woodrum was cut from the practice squad.

In corresponding moves, four-year veteran cornerback Johnathan Banks was signed to the 53-man roster and wide receiver Bralon Addison was signed to the practice squad.

Banks has 37 starts, including 30 in his first two seasons, with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers (2013-16) and Detroit Lions (2016). He has 7 interceptions, all in his first two seasons, and 16 pass breakups. He played in seven games this season (five with Tampa Bay and two with Detroit). Banks originally entered the NFL as a second-round pick (43rd overall) in 2013 of the Buccaneers out of Mississippi State.

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