Chicago Bears receiver Brandon Marshall will not play again this season after suffering two fractured ribs and a lung injury during the team’s 41-28 loss Thursday night to the Dallas Cowboys.
Marshall remained hospitalized Friday receiving treatment.
“I went over to the hospital last night to see him,” Bears coach Marc Trestman said. “He was in very good spirits. He’s got some healing to do.”
The team officially said Friday that the veteran won’t play in next Monday night’s game against the New Orleans Saints, and that it plans to make a determination on the best course of action for the receiver once it receives more information regarding his condition.
Marshall left Soldier Field in an ambulance after suffering the injury in the second quarter.
With 7:35 remaining in the first half, he caught a fourth-down pass from Jay Cutler. As Marshall secured the ball, Cowboys safety Barry Church came in late to make the play, jamming his right knee into the lower right side of the receiver’s back and midsection.
“Yeah, it looked kind of [like] an innocent hit. I didn’t see it that well,” Cutler said after the game. “He’s a big guy and has taken a lot of crazy hits over the years. He doesn’t stay down. So whenever he stays down, you know something is seriously wrong. We’re all worried about him. He’s our guy, and hopefully he’ll get back sooner rather than later. He’s in pain. We talked to him at halftime a little bit. They are still checking him out, but he was in good spirits.”
Athletic trainers attended to Marshall briefly before the receiver walked off the field under his own power. He was later escorted into the locker room, before being taken to a hospital by ambulance.
Marshall caught three passes for 61 yards prior to suffering the injury.
The hit Marshall took against the Cowboys marks the third time this season he suffered an injury that forced him to miss playing time. Marshall was slowed for the early part of the season because of a high right ankle sprain suffered against the Buffalo Bills in the opener. Then, during the team’s Nov. 9 loss to the Green Bay Packers, Marshall sprained his left ankle.
Marshall entered the game fourth on the team in receptions, and he now has 61 receptions for 721 yards and eight touchdowns.
With Marshall out of the mix for what sources say will be the remainder of the season, the Bears likely will use second-year receiver Marquess Wilson in his place while moving Josh Morgan into the slot receiver’s role.
“I think he was in good spirits, and that’s all we really talked about — that he was gonna be OK,” Trestman said. “He had a big smile on his face. That was the extent of it. He’s certainly one of the best communicators and charismatic guys we have on our football team.”
25% Bonus via Western Union
