Compliments Flow for Allen Robinson but No Contract

At this pace, the Bears' health status might be revealed before wide receiver Allen Robinson gets his often discussed contract extension.

Both edge linebacker Robert Quinn and running back/receiver Cordarrelle Patterson missed Tuesday's practice but Bears coach Matt Nagy opted to play the waiting game allowed now by the NFL. There is no injury report due until Sept. 9, so he decided not to tell anyone about this absences.

He wants to keep their Week 1 opponents, the Detroit Lions, guessing.

Earlier in camp Quinn had been brought along slowly for what was described as personal reasons but he was in the scrimmage on Saturday and even had two simulated sacks.

Patterson hadn't missed practice time until Wednesday, but it's possible both were given the "veteran's day off" to rest.

"It's a good try ... but I'm gonna stay away from it," Nagy said about inquiries into the absences. "That's where we're at."

One player Nagy does have back at practice is Allen Robinson, after an ankle sprain earlier.

Robinson doesn't have the contract extension he was hoping for, but does have the ability again to cut and leap and be the receiver who was targeted 154 times last season as Mitchell Trubisky's go-to guy.

Robinson called the ankle injury suffered Aug. 21 fine now and he's ready for the opener.

"It was just a bang-bang play in practice," Robinson said. "I had caught, I forget what route, but I had caught it and somebody came down on my ankle. But throughout the week, just rehabbing and getting the swelling down and stuff like that, and I feel great.

"It's been good to be back out there the past few days."

What would be better would be for Robinson to be on the field with a contract extension in his pocket. Expectations were high this would happen during the offseason, but nothing has.

"That's pretty much out of my control," Robinson said. "Again, I can't pinpoint anything like that. Even for me, I've said this before, it's out of my concern. Last time I came in here (to a press teleconference), we had a month before a game. Now it's 12 days or something like that.

"My main focus is on Detroit and this year, and I truly mean that. Any contract things change, I don't really have an answer for that."

The Bears on year ago Tuesday had a contract extension done for center Cody Whitehair. They had an extension for Charles Leno Jr. in late August of 2017.

It's possible a deal is held up by the COVID-19 effect on next year's salary cap but this hasn't been acknowledged by anyone or determined. The cap is supposed to be about $20 million less next year due to revenue shortage resulting from the lack of fans in stadiums.

Coach Matt Nagy said nothing has happened to diminish how the organization feels about Robinson, including GM Ryan Pace and contract negotiator Joey LAine.

"For us, that's Ryan and Joey, that's their world, that's Allen’s world, "Nagy said. "We understand there's a whole process to that.

"But I know how we all feel, I know how he feels. When you produce the way that he produces and the type of person he is, those are the type of people that you want for a while."

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