The Chicago Bears will be looking for revenge when they face the Washington Commanders on Monday Night Football in Week 6. Every Bears fan remembers how the last game at Northwest Stadium ended in embarrassment, with cornerback Tyrique Stevenson being preoccupied with the crowd and costing Chicago the victory in last season's Week 8 loss.
This year, Stevenson looks to make up for that mistake and help lead the Bears to victory, and, fortunately, the latest Commanders news might help him with that goal.
The Bears received some potential good news about which Commanders receivers they will be facing on Monday night. Washington held their first practice of the week on Wednesday, and star receiver Terry McLaurin was sidelined with a quad injury.
"McLaurin was not at practice (Wednesday) for the Commanders," NFL Network's Ian Rapoport said on Thursday morning. "Since he missed last week, it does not bode well for his status on Monday night... You'd think to be able to play in the game, he'd need a full practice, and he has not even had a limited practice since the injury."
Though McLaurin still has time to return to practice if he's unavailable on Monday night, his continued absence is big news for the Bears' secondary.
Bears DBs Could Catch a Break with Terry McLaurin Injury
McLaurin suffered his quad injury in the Commanders' Week 3 victory over the Las Vegas Raiders and hasn't practiced since. Thus, starting off the week still on the sidelines is not a great sign for him. With the game being on Monday night, he does have one extra day to be healthy enough to play; however, it's safe to say his outlook isn't great.
If McLaurin is unable to play, that's a huge advantage for Chicago's defense, as Washington's next best option is Deebo Samuel. Although Samuel is coming off his best game as a Commanders with eight receptions on 11 targets for 96 yards and a touchdown, Bears fans shouldn't be afraid of the options beyond him on the depth chart.
Before the Bears' bye week, Stevenson had his two best games of the year — including a season-high 92.7 Pro Football Focus coverage grade against the Raiders in Week 4. With the extra motivation he will have this week from last October's blunder, the 25-year-old is likely to put up another great game, even if he's forced to cover Samuel.
On top of that, Kyler Gordon will also be returning to the Bears' secondary. If McLaurin is inactive on Monday, then Chicago only has to focus on slowing down Samuel with either Stevenson or Gordon. That gives the Bears' defense a huge advantage since the Commanders' next-best WR is Noah Brown.
The Commanders might lean on their run game due to the lack of passing options, especially since the Bears have had trouble stopping ground attacks this year. Still, Chicago's chances of victory will look promising if McLaurin is sidelined, as Washington is 1-4 in the five career games he's previously missed.