Bear Digest

Jaylon Johnson and three others on active non-football injury list

The Bears have four immediate injury/illness concerns starting out camp, including their veteran two-time Pro Bowl cornerback.
Gene Chamberlain|
Jaylon Johnson is one of four Bears put on the active/non-football injury list.
Jaylon Johnson is one of four Bears put on the active/non-football injury list. | Kamil Krzaczynski-Imagn Images

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Chicago Bears

The Bears welcomed in rookies Saturday and one of them wound up on the active/non-football injury list

So did three veterans, including cornerback Jaylon Johnson.

The list is for players who have an injury or illness not suffered away from football, not during team offseason work. The rookie who is on the list is undrafted wide receiver Jadhae Walker. The others are veteran backup QB Case Keenum and running back Ian Wheeler.

Keenum is expected to battle with Tyson Bagent for the backup quarterback job.

Johnson was seen on social media working out a few weeks ago with other Bears defensive backs near his new home in Las Vegas, at UNLV.

Players on this list do still count on the active roster so there is no roster exemption that allows the team to pick up another player.

If a player stays on the active/NFL list past final roster cutdown, they can move to the reserve/NFI list and then will not count against the 53-man roster. However, if so, then they must miss at least four games.

Wheeler is coming off a torn ACL suffered last preseason. Whether his presence on the list is related to this is uncertain.

Keenum was practicing throughout OTAs and minicamp.

The Bears do have other potential injury issues with tackle Braxton Jones (knee) and rookie tight end Colston Loveland (shoulder). Those are players who could wind up on the physically unable to perform (PUP) list. Teams do not get roster exemptions for players on that list during training camp, either.

The team hasn't announced any PUP list players yet.

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Gene Chamberlain
GENE CHAMBERLAIN

Gene Chamberlain has covered the Chicago Bears full time as a beat writer since 1994 and prior to this on a part-time basis for 10 years. He covered the Bears as a beat writer for Suburban Chicago Newspapers, the Daily Southtown, Copley News Service and has been a contributor for the Daily Herald, the Associated Press, Bear Report, CBS Sports.com and The Sporting News. He also has worked a prep sports writer for Tribune Newspapers and Sun-Times newspapers.