Urlacher injury tense moment for Bears

MINNEAPOLIS — Even though he wasn’t playing in his home stadium Sunday when he suffered a knee injury that looked gruesome but wasn’t that horrendous, Bears linebacker Brian Urlacher received a fitting tribute from fans at Mall of America Field at the Metrodome.

A hush fell over the dome when Urlacher landed in a heap, writhing in pain.

After several tense minutes he was able to stand and walk slowly, very slowly, to the sideline without assistance.

As he did he received an ovation, not just from fans in navy and orange but those in purple as well.

“It shows the respect for him when the whole stadium is quiet and when the man gets up and everybody’s cheering for him — a little bit louder than normal,” Bears wide receiver Roy Williams said.

“It just shows the respect for 54. He’s a team leader and he’s an icon for the league.”

Urlacher suffered a sprained MCL in his left knee, according to the Bears, an injury that normally heals on its own in several weeks.

“He’ll be healthy for next year,” Williams said, “and he’ll come back just like his old self.”

According to press box statistics, Urlacher had a game-high 10 tackles Sunday, including a team-best 3 tackles for lost yardage.

The injury is likely to keep the 12-year veteran from participating in next month’s Pro Bowl, which he was voted to for the eighth time last week.

It shouldn’t affect his off-season workouts, but it appeared to be extremely serious, especially to teammates on the field when a collision with teammate Major Wright and Vikings wide receiver Percy Harvin resulted in Wright falling on Urlacher’s leg.

“You get a little scared,” cornerback Charles Tillman said. “But I’m an optimist, so I always try to have a positive outlook. It’s definitely scary to see one of your teammates, especially him, go down.

“He IS the Chicago Bears. He’ll be OK; he’s a strong guy.”

Wright, who finished second on the Bears with 9 tackles, wasn’t sure how he wound up falling on Urlacher.

“I just went up for the ball, didn’t think anything of it, and came down on him at the end,” Wright said. “I was just like ‘wow.’ I sat down and was praying for him. I didn’t know what was going on.”