Could TJ Edwards' injury open the door for Ruben Hyppolite II to shine?

I have to imagine the Bears' front office didn't expect their fourth-round selection to be a healthy scratch during four of the first eight games of the year.

While Hyppolite might've stumbled out of the gates to begin his career, it's still far too early to write him off as a draft bust. Some have done just that, though. The latest news from Ben Johnson at today's presser could provide him with an opportunity to change the narrative.

TJ Edwards had surgery on his broken hand, which the #Bears will club up. He's also still dealing with a hamstring issue that's bothered him all year. Sounds like he won't play Sunday but will avoid IR.
— Patrick Finley (@patrickfinley) November 7, 2025

There's no sugarcoating it. The loss of TJ Edwards will be a significant blow. He's a big reason the team has turned its run defense around in recent weeks. It's good that it sounds like he'll avoid Injured Reserve, though. Still, in the short term, they need to find an answer. The forgotten fourth-round pick might be able to provide that.

Hyppolite showed flashes this preseason. He played extremely well against the Dolphins, specifically.

Bears rookie LB Ruben Hyppolite II (#47) piqued my interest with a couple of run through plays against the run pic.twitter.com/GonofQ9he2
— Nate Tice (@Nate_Tice) August 11, 2025

Then the games started to matter, and Noah Sewell ran away with the third linebacker job. Hyppolite has only played 18 snaps on defense and has largely been relegated to special teams duties in the games he's been active. Again, not what you want to see from your early day three selection.

Sewell has played surprisingly well against the run (considering he was also relegated to special teams duties over the first two years of his career) when he's seen the field in relief of Edwards. He's occasionally been exposed in the passing game, though. That's where Hyppolite could pay huge dividends this week.

Hyppolite is truly an athletic specimen. He ran the 40-yard dash in 4.42 seconds and tested off-the-charts in the other speed and agility drills at the University of Maryland Pro Day.

Ruben Hyppolite was drafted in round 4 pick 132 in the 2025 draft class. He scored a 8.22 #RAS out of a possible 10.00. This ranked 570 out of 3204 LB from 1987 to 2025. https://t.co/NXJqTF5cm6 pic.twitter.com/qRoWJEtbJ4
— RAS.football (@MathBomb) April 26, 2025

The Giants have a good young tight end in Theo Johnson. He's second on the team in both targets (43) and catches (26) and leads the team with five receiving touchdowns. Tremaine Edmunds should be able to hold up well with his size and speed combination, but he might make Sewell look silly.

Hyppolite might be extremely raw, but I like his odds of holding his own on third down a lot more than I do Sewell's. The 24-year-old could play an important role against the Giants.

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