Kyle Monangai Injury Update From Ben Johnson Offers Optimistic Outlook For Bears RB

Chicago Bears head coach Ben Johnson offered a positive injury update on Kyle Monangai on Friday.

Chicago Bears running back Kyle Monangai (25) with the ball in the second half at Bank of America Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Bob Donnan-Imagn Images | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

The Chicago Bears won't get Kyle Monangai back for the Week 6 game against the Atlanta Falcons, but his outlook is positive based on the latest injury update on him.

Monangai has been on the shelf with a turf toe injury he suffered last week. The injury kept him out of the Week 5 loss to the Green Bay Packers and he did not practice this week.

On Friday, head coach Ben Johnson said Monangai remains week-to-week, but he noted that the Bears running back will avoid injured reserve, according to ESPN's Courtney Cronin.

Johnson added that Monangai is "trending in the right direction" in his recovery from the injury.

Kyle Monangai's injury outlook

Chicago Bears running back Kyle Monangai (25) reacts after a play against the New York Jets during the second quarter at Soldier Field. Mandatory Credit: Mike Dinovo-Imagn Images | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

The fact that Monangai won't be placed on injured reserve means the Bears do not expect him to miss more than three games, so there's that.

However, it might be difficult for him to return in Week 7, as the Bears will be playing on a short week when they meet the New England Patriots at Soldier Field on a Thursday night.

As a result, it's more realistic to expect Monangai will make it back for the Week 8 contest against the Seattle Seahawks at Lumen Field.

Kyle Monangai leaves a major void

Chicago Bears running back Kyle Monangai (25) runs the ball against the Minnesota Vikings during the first half at Soldier Field. Mandatory Credit: Patrick Gorski-Imagn Images | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

One of the best features of the Bears' offense is the one-two punch with Monangai and D'Andre Swift, a pairing that can take games over, as we saw in Week 1.

Monangai has been the Bears' most consistent running back this season. He was leading the team in rushing before his injury and was more reliable than Swift, who has had fumbling problems through five games.

In fact, Swift's fumble in Week 4 against the New York Jets was so "egregious," as Johnson called it, that he got benched.

The Bears deployed Roschon Johnson in Monangai's stead last week and it did not yield positive results. Johnson carried the ball five times and tallied just six yards. However, the Bears got beat so badly that it wouldn't have mattered if Monangai played.

Looking ahead to Week 6, the Bears would be wise to explore using someone else instead of Johnson behind Swift after the former's lack of success against the Green Bay Packers.

Chicago has two other options on the practice squad in Zavier Scott, who was elevated last week but didn't see any work, and Salvon Ahmed, who was a standout during the offseason and a better runner than Johnson.

The only reason Ahmed didn't make the cut over Johnson was due to the latter's special teams value. That should go by the wayside this week and the Bears should give Ahmed a look behind Swift.