Cameron Meredith Injury Could Be More Than Just the ACL

The Chicago Bears wide receiver position might be one of the most snake-bitten in the NFL. This is not superstition either. Every time it appears like they have a superstar in the making, something terrible seems to go wrong. Alshon Jeffery suffered through injuries and suspensions after his Pro Bowl year in 2013. Brandon Marshall got himself run out of town. Marcus Robinson suffered a bad knee injury in 2001. Curtis Conway went down in 1997 after back-to-back 1,000-yard seasons and was never the same. Now the Cameron Meredith injury can join that sad list. He was on his way to becoming one of the biggest success stories maybe in Bears history. A former college quarterback switches to wide receiver, goes undrafted, makes the team and rises to become their best on the roster. Meredith seemed destined for a big year in 2017. He was having a tremendous training camp and solid preseason. Then one low hit changed everything. [video width="1280" height="720" mp4="https://www.sportsmockery.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/08/Chicago-Bears-WR-Cameron-Meredith-is-carted-off-after-an-injury-suffered-while-making-a-catch.mp4"][/video] It was difficult to watch then and no less difficult now. Not only is this a body blow to the Bears offense, but it's a tragic turn of events for a promising young player. After the game head coach John Fox confirmed the teams' belief Meredith tore his ACL but will wait on MRI results. Unfortunately it could be even worse than that.

Former NFL doctor believes Cameron Meredith injury far more serious

Dr. David J. Chao used to work in the NFL and has a deep, comprehensive knowledge of every time of injury suffered by football players. He took time to review the video of the Meredith hit. Based on his long experience, his initial diagnosis was not good. In fact it may be worse than imagined.

"The Chicago Bears will be without their No.1 receiver this season – and perhaps beyond. Video of Cameron Meredith going down after being tackled low in Sunday’s preseason game against the Tennessee Titans indicates he suffered a multi-ligament injury. It is likely Meredith tore his ACL and MCL. Surgery will be required, at least for the ACL. Hopefully, his cartilage and meniscus were spared, but this is more than just an isolated ACL tear. An air cast and cart being used for Meredith do not indicate fracture but instead significant knee ligament instability. On rare occasions, there is artery and nerve involvement, as this is essentially a partial knee dislocation. It does not appear that will be an issue in this instance. However, there is no guarantee Meredith will return at the start of the 2018 season."

Pressure falls on Ryan Pace to adjust

That's sad, first and foremost. It means there's a possibility that Meredith may never again reach the possible heights he was approaching before the injury. Though based on history it's probably not a good idea to bet against him. Nonetheless this changes the future plans for Chicago moving forward. They were already somewhat thin at wide receiver before this. With his future in question, it means GM Ryan Pace will almost certainly be aggressive trying to stack up at the position in 2018, if not sooner. Given the work he's done in reloading this Bears roster, it's fair to say that's something he's capable of. Roster cuts will occur on September 2nd. Odds are the Bears might attack the waiver wire searching for help at the position. They may even consider making a trade depending on who's available. Odds are more info will come out in the next week.