[CBFF] Bears hoping DES CAN PLAY

[Michael Halatek]

  Bears hopeful ailing Clark will play Sunday
          By Larry Mayer
          
  
          

                .main_content_well {font-size:11px;}            LAKE FOREST, Ill. – Desmond Clark missed practice Wednesday with a sprained foot and was listed as questionable on the injury report, meaning that there’s a 50 percent chance he’ll play in Sunday night’s showdown against the Seattle Seahawks. But the Bears are hopeful that their starting tight end will be able to suit up. 
  The eight-year veteran hurt his foot in the third quarter of last weekend’s comeback win over the Minnesota Vikings while making a 17-yard reception. Clark returned for one play, then limped off the field and was carted to the locker room. 
           
The Bears' Desmond Clark leads NFC tight ends with 193 receiving yards this season.“Hopefully we’re not going to lose him,” said offensive coordinator Ron Turner. “Hopefully, he’ll be ready to go. If he can’t go, then (backup tight ends) John (Gilmore) and Gabe (Reid) are going to have to step up and play. Obviously it would be a loss because Dez is playing great.”
  After catching 24 passes each of the past two seasons, Clark has 12 receptions and one TD in three games. His 193 yards receiving rank second among NFL tight ends, trailing only the Cleveland Browns’ Kellen Winslow, who has 197 yards on 19 catches. 
  “He’s been playing great football through the first three games in the passing game, obviously making some plays, but also blocking,” Turner said. “So if he’s not there, like I said, it’ll be a loss. But that’s part of football. Somebody else has to step up.”
  That responsibility would fall on Gilmore and Reid. Gilmore is considered a better blocker than receiver, but his last three catches have all been TDs, including 5- and 3-yarders in a Week 2 win over the Lions. Reid’s only three NFL receptions came last season. 
  “We still will have a tight end position we’ll try to get the ball to,” coach Lovie Smith said when asked about how Clark’s potential absence would impact the offense Sunday night. “It’s not the same, of course, when you don’t have your starter. (Clark) is playing as well as just about any tight end that’s out there right now. But we’ll move on without him if we have to. 
  “We still should be OK. We won’t take the tight end out of the game plan or anything like that. Hopefully Rex (Grossman) will still feel comfortable throwing to whoever we have out there.”
  Safety Chris Harris (ankle) and wide receiver Mark Bradley (ankle) were also listed as questionable on the Bears' injury report. Harris practiced Wednesday, but Bradley was held out of the workout.
  Manning reacts: One day after pleading no contest to a felony assault charge resulting from an attack on a man at a restaurant, Bears cornerback Ricky Manning Jr. maintained his innocence.
  Manning was sentenced to three years probation and ordered to attend a year of anger management counseling and to complete 100 hours of community service. He entered the plea because he was already on probation for a misdemeanor offense in 2002 and also didn’t want to miss a portion of the season going through a trial.
  “I wasn’t involved in the beating of this guy and any kind of thing like that, but the plea was something I had to do,” he said Wednesday. “I also want to apologize to the Bears fans and the organization and the players. I didn’t do what I was accused of. I just want everybody to understand it wasn’t a plea where I’m saying, ‘Yeah, I did it.’ I wasn’t involved with it.”
  Manning admitted that he is concerned about being disciplined by the NFL, but he hopes that the league thoroughly examines all of the facts in the incident.
  “There’s a chance of it because it is a plea to a felony if you just read the big print,” he said. “But hopefully the NFL will be more active in this and not let people just take advantage of their players because I was accused of something that I didn’t do and read the fine print and read that the DA said I wasn’t involved in this. Hopefully they’ll go from there and be fair with me.”
  In and out: One day after the Seahawks announced that running back Shaun Alexander would miss Sunday night’s game with a cracked bone in his foot, the NFL MVP caused a stir by saying that he felt much better and might be able to play. 
  But a second CT scan late Wednesday confirmed the original diagnosis, sidelining Alexander and thrusting backup Maurice Morris into the starting position against the Bears. 
  “We have to be smart with that,” said Seahawks coach Mike Holmgren. “You can make that little crack a big crack in a hurry and actually make it a displaced fracture, which you don’t want. That sometimes can require surgery and then it’s a bad thing. While I’m not tickled about this, I think we can fix it with just some rest, so I’ll be real careful with it.”
  Roster move: The Bears on Wednesday signed rookie linebacker Brandon Hoyte to their practice squad. The Notre Dame product was waived by the Indianapolis Colts Sept. 2. 




   

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