LAKE FOREST, Ill. (670 The Score) — Bears head coach Ben Johnson hopes for his team to be at its best down the stretch of the season. Some key reinforcements could be coming back to help the Bears reach that goal.
On Friday, the Bears opened the 21-day window for Pro Bowl cornerback Jaylon Johnson to return from injured reserve. That would put him in line to potentially return for Chicago's game at Green Bay on Dec. 7 — or potentially sooner.
Johnson’s return to the practice field came two months to the date of him suffering a significant groin injury, which required core muscle surgery. Johnson's return to practice comes as the Bears also anticipate the return of linebacker T.J. Edwards (hand/hamstring) and nickelback Kyler Gordon (hamstring) in the coming weeks.
“Those are three guys going into the season you had a lot of high hopes for and what they could do,” Ben Johnson said. “I certainly had a tremendous amount of respect for all three of those guys competing against them the last few years. I'll be excited when we get all three back on the field together."
Jaylon Johnson's occurred during the Bears’ 52-21 loss to the Lions on Sept. 14 in Detroit. It was his first game back following a groin injury that lingered during the entirety of training camp.
Johnson underwent core muscle surgery following that injury and declined to put a timetable on his return, indicating he wanted to get himself fully healthy rather than rushing back.
Johnson has been present with the Bears at Halas Hall and joined his teammates in the locker room Thursday afternoon. One day later, he made a return to the practice field.
“He wants to be out there with these guys,” Ben Johnson said. “This year has not gone the way he really envisioned it. You come in and it happens during the summer, the initial (injury) and you miss training camp, and then you're hopeful you're back to where you were before. And you get hurt in the first game back. I think he really wants to be out there, and so he's worked his tail off to get to this point.”
Edwards has been limited to five games this season. He first suffered his hamstring injury during practice in late August and reaggravated the injury during the game in Detroit.
Edwards missed the Bears' 24-20 win over the Giants at Soldier Field last Sunday after he underwent surgery on his hand injury recently. The Bears didn't place Edwards on injured reserve, an indication they believe he can return within the timeframe of four weeks since the surgery.
Gordon is eligible to return from injured reserve next week. He has been sidelined with a hamstring injury and limited to just two games this season.
The Bears (6-3) will play the Vikings (4-5) on Sunday at U.S. Bank Stadium in Minneapolis.
Chris Emma covers the Bears, Chicago’s sports scene and more for 670TheScore.com. Follow him on Twitter @CEmma670.