When Chicago Bears left tackle Ozzy Trapilo suffered ruptured patellar tendon during the Bears playoff run, the expectation for most was that is 2026 season would be over. However, General Manager Ryan Poles noted that while the injury was serious and he suffered it late in the season, they are a bit more optimistic.
Poles suggested there is a chance for Trapilo to return before training camp ends, and if not, just a touch into the regular season.
Chicago Bears could see Ozzy Trapilo much sooner than expected
BIG INJURY UPDATE: #Bears LT Ozzy Trapilo isn’t just ahead of schedule, he could “potentially” return before the end of training camp.
— Hoge & Jahns (@HogeAndJahns) August 11, 2026
Ryan Poles gave @AdamHoge & @adamjahns the latest in an interview dropping tomorrow! pic.twitter.com/BFAsuj22to
“Whether he comes back, an has a little bit of a training camp, whether he comes back in September,” said Poles on a potential timeline. “I think the big thing for us is padded practices. If you get too far down the line, it is hard to get that physical practice you need to prepare for games.”
As the season starts to get deeper, the team starts to lose padded practices. It takes hitting and wear and tear off of a team that is suffering serious injuries throughout the games they play. Early into the season, the team likes to tackle and hit in practice to get the team tough for those late season games.
So, this might be more of an optimistic timeline than an actual timeline. It is more of Poles laying out what it would take for him to get back on the field. He even ended the question by saying that it is just a potential thought that he will return in time.
However, Poles is making it clear that if Trapilo is back in the first couple of weeks of the season, or even before that, the team has plans to bring him into the starting lineup. However, if Trapilo starts to miss too much time in the regular season, Chicago is going to see a late season comeback as tough.
If he comes back and is fully healthy by Thanksgiving, they do not think he can get the practice time necessary to come into an NFL game in the middle of the season. The team would have to be desperate with their left tackle situation to throw him out there without the proper padded practices.
Still, the fact that Poles is considering that timeline at all is pretty telling for how far Trapilo has come. He is pushing to get back, and the Bears are excited.
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