Head coach Matt Nagy says his expectations for the final two games of 2019 is for his team to remain focused on winning. This included playing certain starters if they were able to go. He seemed to indicate his intention to finish a disappointing season with a little momentum going into 2020. Some wondered if that might include Akiem Hicks. The big defensive end is still battling his elbow injury from back in October. Nagy indicated his hope that the man would be able to tough it out.
By the look of things, that was nothing more than a smokescreen. The Bears released their final injury report ahead of Sunday and Hicks was listed as OUT for the primetime game against the Kansas City Chiefs. This isn't really a big surprise. The last thing the Bears would want to do is risk one of their best players getting hurt worse than he already is in two games that are basically meaningless. One must remember that this is Nagy, the guy who won't play starters in the preseason.
Akiem Hicks isn't young enough to risk like that
Hicks is going to turn 30-years old in 2020. The Bears would be wise to limited the number of hits his body takes as much as possible. They need him at his best for as long as they can manage it. Shutting him down for two games that mean nothing was ultimately an easy call. He'll have that much extra time to start getting his body right for next year. If this team is to take another crack at the playoffs, they'll need him at 100%.
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