Bears TE Shaheen 'likely' to return this season
Bears second-year TE Adam Shaheen (ankle/foot) will be placed on injured reserve, but he's a "likely" candidate to return after spending eight weeks on I.R., GM Ryan Pace said Sunday.
The Bears can bring back up to two players from injured reserve, provided they spend at least eight weeks on I.R., per the NFL's rule that was updated in 2016.
Shaheen, the 45th overall pick in the 2017 draft, suffered the injury Aug. 18 in Denver when his right ankle bent in an awkward direction at the end of a five-yard catch against the Broncos. The Bears had held off on discussing the severity of Shaheen's injury, only saying both the foot and ankle were affected, and Pace confirmed Sunday that no surgery was required.
Shaheen led the Bears with three receiving touchdowns as a rookie despite being underused by John Fox and Dowell Loggains. He was having a strong summer, months after the Bears identified Eagles free agent Trey Burton as a key weapon in Matt Nagy's new offense and subsequently made Burton one of the NFL's highest-paid tight ends with a four-year, $32 million deal in March.
The 6-6, 278-pound Shaheen has rare size and athleticism, which had shown up consistently this summer in the red zone and over the middle of the field. He caught six passes for 37 yards during the preseason.
The Bears' $16.1 million allocated to their TE room is the third-most in the NFL at the position, according to spotrac.com. In addition to Burton and Shaheen, Chicago still has 2017 starter Dion Sims and former undrafted free agents Daniel Brown and Ben Braunecker on the roster. It stands to reason, then, that even in a TE-centric offense, the Bears are well equipped to weather Shaheen's absence. Brown and Braunecker each thrived in the preseason, though Brown suffered a shoulder injury in the finale.
Grasu out:
In order to make room on the roster for Khalil Mack, the Bears waived 2015 third-round C Hroniss Grasu, Pace's highest draft pick oustered from the club. Grasu started eight games as a rookie and was set to be the full-time starter in 2016 when he suffered a preseason ACL tear on Family Night at Soldier Field.
The Bears drafted Cody Whitehair and James Daniels, respectively, in the following two offseasons, first signaling Grasu's dicey roster status. He barely played in the preseason prior to going the distance at center in the preseason finale. After initially surviving the Bears' cuts Saturday, Grasu's spot goes to Chicago's new prized pass rusher, Mack.
To fill Shaheen's roster spot, the Bears re-signed 28-year-old fifth-year veteran DL Nick Williams, who has appeared in 2016 games, most recently in 2016 with Miami.
Practice squad assembling:
The Bears haven't yet officially announced their 10-man practice squad but undrafted rookies RB Ryan Nall and LB Josh Woods, and second-year WR Tanner Gentry are among the expected signees.
The Oregon State product Nall led the Bears in preseason rushing, while Gentry, a camp favorite a year ago as a rookie out of Wyoming who tallied 3-35 receiving in four appearances (three starts), had a team-high 16 receptions, including one touchdown, this preseason. Woods tallied three tackles and one QB hit in the preseason.
• Arthur Arkush is the managing editor for Pro Football Weekly. For more on the NFL, visit profootballweekly.com and follow Arthur on Twitter @arthurarkush or @PFWeekly.