Miller's mental toughness kept him going

Chicago Bears tight end Zach Miller, whose 9-yard touchdown reception Sunday was his fifth in the past six games, didn't play a single snap in the regular season from 2012-14 as shoulder, calf and foot injuries kept him off the field.

But he had a lot of time to think and learn about himself.

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"I'd say mental toughness, to never give up," Miller said. "I knew that I wanted to continue to play football, and I believed in myself and my abilities. It was just something where (with) every setback, I was willing to do whatever it took to get back to where I was prior to that injury. That's really how I went through all three of them."

Miller didn't spend any of his downtime devising a backup plan if football didn't work out.

"I didn't have a Plan B," he said. "If you've got a Plan B, you ain't focused on Plan A. So throughout that whole time, I was really just focused on getting back and getting ready to play football again."

After catching 41 passes for 428 yards in his first two seasons with Jacksonville, Miller suffered the shoulder injury in the Jaguars' fourth game in 2011.

He didn't play in a regular-season game again until this year's season opener. His 313 receiving yards are a career high, and his 21 receptions match his personal best.

The 5 touchdowns are 1 more than his career total entering this season.

Medical practice:

The list of serious injuries incurred at practice grew longer Monday when safety Antrel Rolle was placed on season-ending injured reserve with a sprained knee after missing four games.

Rolle was injured on the final play of practice Friday, Nov. 20, and originally listed as probable but downgraded to questionable the following day. He has not played since. Offensive tackle Tayo Fabuluje was added to the roster to replace Rolle.

"Obviously it was a non-padded practice," coach John Fox said. "It was a noncontact injury and it was a sprained MCL."

Before that injury, Rolle had missed one game in the previous nine years.

Wide receiver Marquess Wilson suffered a foot injury at practice Wednesday, Dec. 2, and was placed on injured reserve last Saturday. Fox revealed Monday that Wilson has had surgery for a fractured bone in his foot.

Wide receiver Alshon Jeffery has had three separate injuries at practice this year, starting with a calf injury in a walk-through on the final day of training camp that kept him out of all four preseason games. He has missed a total of five regular-season games with hamstring and groin injuries.

Rookie center Hroniss Grasu missed three games after suffering a neck injury at practice.

In elite company:

Matt Forte on Sunday became the 12th player in NFL history with 8,000 rushing yards and 4,000 receiving yards.

The eight-year veteran reached that milestone in 117 career games, making him the second fastest in NFL history to do so behind Hall of Famer Marshall Faulk, who did it in 107 games.

But Forte regretted that the offense couldn't put kicker Robbie Gould in better position for his attempt at a game-tying field goal that was wide right from 50 yards with 1:40 left.

Alshon Jeffery's 50-yard reception put the ball at Washington's 35, but the next three downs produced just a 3-yard run by Forte.

"We had enough time on the clock to go down and score and basically end the game, let alone go for a tie, but we laid an egg," Forte said. "We get a big play and got three downs to get a first down there and keep the ball moving and get in the red zone, and we laid an egg."

With baited breath:

Tuesday at 3 p.m. is the deadline for rookie wide receiver Kevin White to be added to the 53-man roster or placed on season-ending injured reserve.

"We'll keep you posted," coach John Fox said.