Ben Johnson gives the one update Bears fans didn’t want to hear regarding one of the offseason’s biggest additions
Chicago Bears head coach Ben Johnson confirmed that starting safety Coby Bryant has undergone knee surgery, pushing back his projected return window to 4-6 months.
The Chicago Bears situation with starting safety Coby Bryant just got the worst possible update that head coach Ben Johnson hinted was on the way a few days back at training camp.
Last Monday, Bryant was carted off the field with a knee injury suffered during one-on-one drills. Soon after, ESPN’s Adam Schefter reported that Bryant was expected to miss 8-10 weeks due to a hyperextended knee, bone bruise, and small fracture. Days later, Johnson noted that report didn’t come from inside the building and the team was still evaluating the full extent of Bryant’s injury and his projected recovery timeline.
Chicago’s full diagnosis just got revealed, and it’s even worse than anyone initially expected. Bryant is now expected to miss 4-6 months, which will force him to miss the majority of the regular season, although there’s hope he could be back ahead of playoffs with mid-Dec. being the updated target for his return.
“He had surgery on Friday and looks like he’s going to be more of a four to six month timeline,” Johnson told reporters ahead of Tuesday’s practice. “He’s going to be in a hurry to get back to help us there at the end of the year.”
Coby Bryant’s updated injury timeline is the worst possible news the Bears could have recieved
The Bears had a plan to completely revamp the safety position and Bryant was expected to be the key player that vision was going to be built around after making a strong push to bring him in on a three-year, $40 million contract in free agency.
Being without him for what will be the majority of the regular season is a significant blow to defensive coordinator Dennis Allen’s defense.
“Obviously it sucks to lose a guy like that for any particular time,” Allen said last Tuesday. “He’s a big part of what we had planned to do and will still be a big part of what we have planned to do. In all adversity comes also opportunity so it’ll be another opportunity for someone to step up.”
That player set to step up is going to have to be Xavier Woods, whom the team signed over the weekend. The former Tennessee Titans starter has experience working with DBs coach Al Harris and already was getting reps with the first-team defense on Sunday and during Monday’s walk-thru. It’s clear he’s someone the staff already has a ton of confidence in lining him up next to first-round rookie Dillon Thieneman.
Xavier Woods just became an even more important piece for Chicago’s defense
Earlier this morning, I was just writing about the potential similarities between Woods and last year’s unheralded starter turned hero in Nahshon Wright. Two veteran defensive backs with ties to the staff that were brought in to get through a tough injury situation.
Wright went on to start 16 games last season for the Bears with Jaylon Johnson sidelined and earned a Pro Bowl alternate selection. Woods now has that kind of opportunity and I do have trust in what the staff views in him as a viable short-term replacement for Bryant.
It’s a brutal situation for the Bears to have to deal with, especially with the kind of investment they made in Bryant and the early returns he was showing this offseason.
“Coby’s the template for how we all want our team to play,” Johnson explained. “He was a big part of offense, defense, and special teams. The mentality, the mindset, his approach. We loved everything about him.”
Hopefully it’s a speedy recovery for Bryant, but in the meantime, it’s next man up and Xavier Woods is the player the Bears are prepared to turn to heading into the 2026 season.
