Bears have sympathy for suspended Vikings
Guard Terrence Metcalf has already served a four-game suspension after testing positive for a diuretic similar to the one that resulted in four-game suspensions for Vikings defensive tackles Kevin and Pat Williams, but he isn't getting any satisfaction from the misfortune of others.
"I wouldn't wish that on anybody," Metcalf said. "People may think it's about the money. It's not about the money; it's the time you spend away from football that kills you. You're spending time away from football, and money and you have to explain, 'OK, well I didn't take steroids, I did this, (and) it wasn't like that.'
"I think that's the biggest issue. I wish those guys the best of luck, and hopefully they come out of this where they don't have to be suspended or whatever. The toughest thing is just being away from the guys and being away from the facility."
The Williamses (who aren't related) on Wednesday received a temporary restraining order to block their suspensions, but that decision could be overturned on appeal. The Williamses are the biggest reasons the Vikings are the NFL's second-best defense against the run, and the Bears' chances of sneaking into the playoffs would be improved with them out of the picture, but players weren't focusing much on that possibility.
"We're not worried about that," tight end Greg Olsen said. "They'll be fine. A lot of teams lose key players. But you've got to do the best you can to fill in, and you can't let that be an excuse why you lose.
"Obviously those two players are key to their defense and what they do. They've just got to say, 'These are the cards we got dealt, and we're just going to go ahead with it.' "
Besides, the Bears already had to play against "The Williams Wall" twice this season.
"It came a little too late, huh?" said offensive tackle John St. Clair.
Playoff possibilities: If the Vikings beat the Lions this weekend they would hold all tiebreakers over the Bears, which means the Bears would have to wind up with a better overall record than Minnesota to win the division. The Bears would have to win at least three of their remaining four contests in this scenario and have the Vikings lose their final three games (That would leave the Bears at 9-7 and the Vikings at 8-8).
If the Vikings win two of their remaining four contests with one being a victory at Detroit, the Bears have to win all four of their remaining games. (That would leave the Bears at 10-6 and the Vikings at 9-7).
If the Vikings lose to Detroit, the Bears can hold the tiebreaker by defeating the Packers on Dec. 22, giving them a better division record than the Vikings (tiebreaker No. 2). If the Vikings lose to the Lions and the Bears lose to Packers, the Bears will have to finish with a better overall record than the Vikings and Packers in order to win the division due to both foes holding tiebreaker edges over them.
If the Vikings beat the Lions and the Bears lose to the Packers, Chicago would have to win all three other games and have the Vikings lose their remaining three and Green Bay lose at least once.
Sitting it out: Defensive tackles Tommie Harris (rest) and Anthony Adams (foot), linebackers Lance Briggs (rest) and Hunter Hillenmeyer (Achilles), safety Mike Brown (rest), center Olin Kreutz (rest), fullback Jason McKie (quadriceps) and defensive end Adewale Ogunleye (shoulder) all sat out Wednesday's practice.
The workout began outside but was moved inside to the Walter Payton Center when snow made the field too slippery.
Jaguars starting cornerback Rashean Mathis is out for Sunday's game with a knee injury that could be a year elder.