Bears' OT Williams returns to practice

First-round draft pick Chris Williams returned to the practice field, on a limited basis, for the first time since suffering a herniated disk in his back on the second day of training camp back in late July.

The offensive tackle participated in 1-on-1 drills involving some contact but did not do any 11-on-11 team work.

"It's one step," coach Lovie Smith said. "It's not like he was out there going full speed in team and all of that. We're just working him back in. He still has a ways to go."

Williams says there is no timetable for his return to the playing field, but the Lions game at home on Nov. 2 is probably a best-case scenario. For now, the 6-foot-6, 312-pound Williams is just glad to be taking small steps.

"It'll be fun," he said. "We'll see if I can actually still do this stuff, right? I'm just taking it a day at a time, waking up every morning and seeing how it feels."

Asked where he was at, Williams quipped, "Well, right now I'm at Halas Hall. No, I'm doing great. I'm happy with where I'm at."

Spreading the blame: Defensive end Adewale Ogunleye, whose mugging by the Bucs prompted Charles "Peanut" Tillman to incur a pivotal 15-yard unnecessary roughness penalty Sunday, doesn't blame his teammate for the overtime loss, although Tampa took advantage of the flag to drive to the winning score.

"Even after the penalty, we should have held them," Ogunleye said. "We (had) stopped them, but we messed up, and we got a penalty. But there's 10 other guys that should have Peanut's back on that, including myself.

"We should have gotten off the field even after the penalty (which moved the ball to the Bucs' 25-yard line). That's not the reason we lost the game. That's the reason that drive continued on, but we still had another eight plays to stop them, and we didn't."

Breaking up: Lovie Smith said he regretted having to part ways with wide receiver Mark Bradley, an underachieving second-round draft pick in 2005.

"(You're) always disappointed when you have to cut ties with one of the players that you brought into the fold," Smith said. "I'm sorry it didn't work out for him here, but again, sometimes divorce is a good thing and (we) wish him the best. Hopefully the next stop for him, the next team he's with, will work out a little bit better."

Medical report: Defensive end Alex Brown (ankle), defensive tackle Tommie Harris (knee), return specialist Devin Hester (rib) and cornerback Nate Vasher (shoulder) all missed practice, along with wide receiver Marty Booker, who was excused for personal reasons.

Linebackers Lance Briggs (foot) and Brian Urlacher (rest) and safety Mike Brown (rest) had limited participation, as did offensive tackle Chris Williams (back).