Alshon Jeffery has hamstring injury, not muscle tightness
BOURBONNAIS, Ill. -- Less than 24 hours after the Chicago Bears classified Alshon Jeffery's latest health setback as "muscle tightness," head coach John Fox conceded that the wide receiver is suffering from a mild hamstring injury, which kept him off the practice field on Thursday.
"We get concerned about everybody whether they are injured or not practicing, but on the other hand, we don't get too concerned," Fox said. "We've got guys to take their place. We're at 89 guys right now on the offseason roster. So, it's part of camp."
Although Fox sounded unfazed by the developments, remember, Jeffery chose to skip the club's voluntary workout program at Halas Hall to independently train in South Florida. Jeffery previously said his decision to be away from the team centered on the desire to overcome the assortment of lower body soft tissue injuries (calf, groin and hamstring) that cost him seven games in 2015.
Jeffery still caught 54 passes for 807 yards and four touchdowns in the injury-plagued season, but concerns over his durability played into the Bears' decision to forego paying Jeffery top-five wide receiver money in the offseason. Instead, Jeffery is playing the 2016 season under the franchise tag, which guarantees him $14.599 million on a one-year deal.
Jeffery is officially day to day. The Bears practice on Friday before returning to Soldier Field on Saturday for the club's annual Family Day practice. Following an off-day on Sunday, the Bears hold two more practices in Bourbonnais before breaking camp for the summer.
Despite the health setbacks, Jeffery remains one of the Bears top offensive weapons. He currently has a dozen 100-yard receiving games in his four seasons with the Bears, tied for fifth-most in franchise history. He set career highs with 89 catches for 1,421 yards in 2013. Jeffery also hauled in 10 touchdowns in 2014.
In addition to Jeffery, the Bears are currently practicing without fellow starters Eddie Royal and Zach Miller , who have concussions. Both have been out since Monday.
