Bears tight end Cole Kmet will play in Week 17 vs Falcons
The Chicago Bears are getting a major boost to start off their Week 17 matchup and home finale against the Atlanta Falcons. Cole Kmet, who entered into the weekend listed as questionable with a knee injury, will officially be active and is expected to play later today. Kmet was initially listed as a game time […]
The Chicago Bears are getting a major boost to start off their Week 17 matchup and home finale against the Atlanta Falcons.
Cole Kmet, who entered into the weekend listed as questionable with a knee injury, will officially be active and is expected to play later today. Kmet was initially listed as a game time decision on Sunday morning leading up to kickoff.
The Bears starting tight end was the first player to take the field for warm ups but reportedly only did some light warming up before returning to the locker room with the team's head trainer.
Kmet narrowly avoided missing the first game of his career. He will instead be suiting up for his 66th consecutive regular season game since the Bears drafted him back in 2020.
The Bears tight end has been a major focal piece of the team's passing game throughout this season. In 2023, Kmet has caught 70 receptions for 678 receiving yards and six touchdowns.
Kmet was also listed as questionable prior to the Bears Week 16 matchup against the Arizona Cardinals. The 24-year-old managed to suit up in Week 16 and ended up setting a career-high with his first 100-yard receiving performance in the NFL.
Bears head coach Matt Eberflus said on Friday following the team's practice that he thought things looked pretty good and were positive regarding his tight end's availability. Even Kmet himself was trying his hardest to be out on the field today.
"Availability is dependability," Kmet said while speaking to reporters in the locker room on Friday. "My job is be ready for the game the best that I can and I've done that for quite a long time since I've been in the league."
"There's definitely a balance and I'm not going to be dumb about it," he added when asked if he wants to be smart about how he handles the injury. "But, if I feel good to go, I'm good to go. You gotta be able to let it rip too when you’re out there."
The training staff felt like their tight end was able to go after testing out the soreness in his knee prior to kickoff. The Bears could also be expected to use tight end Robert Tonyan more than usual today to help balance Kmet's load against the Falcons. Tonyan has hauled in eight receptions for 72 yards in 15 games played in 2023.
Matt Eberflus expected to remain as Bears head coach in 2024
He will be getting another year after all.
