Bears’ TJ Edwards gets brutally honest on return from gruesome injury

Chicago Bears linebacker TJ Edwards appeared in just 10 games during the regular season due to hand and hamstring injuries. Then, he fractured his fibula in the Bears’ Wild Card Round win over the Green Bay Packers.

Now healthy again, Edwards is expected to be a true leader in Chicago’s linebacker room. But his journey back to the gridiron will always stick with him, via Phil Thompson of the Chicago Tribune.

“Like the first month (of rehab), I was like ‘Damn, do I really want to do this?’” Edwards said. “And then it was seven games, you know, I got to go back and play.”

“It was really tough, to be honest with you. It was the first real traumatic injury I’ve had in that way, so the monotonous things of just moving your ankle and getting that going was frustrating at times.”

“The reps are like 30 reps, take a second, squeeze your leg more; 15, do that again; 15, then another 15,” he concluded. “I remember doing that and I was just like, ‘Yeah, I don’t know. I don’t know, man. I don’t know if this is for me. But again, really good support staff with the training room and the strength room, they were all huge for me.”

In terms of the mental aspect of his return, Edwards credited his wife always reminding him of his progress and the support of teammate Braxton Jones, who suffered a similar injury. At times, it felt like this entire journey would be for naught.

But Edwards came out on the other side healthy. He is back to playing football, and ready to remind the NFL what he is all about.

Chicago Bears welcome TJ Edwards return 

Over the offseason, the Bears decided to part ways with Tremaine Edmunds and replace him with Devin Bush. They then re-signed D’Marco Jackson to round out the trio. Edwards will be tasked with leading the unit and being a strong voice overall on defense.

Despite playing in just 10 games, Edwards still up 67 tackles, three quarterback hits and a pick-six in 2025. Over his three-year run, 44 games, with the Bears, the linebacker has recorded 351 tackles, seven sacks and five interceptions.

It may be a little jarring to step back on the field after such a serious injury. But Edwards is fully aware of the effort it took the get back. Now, he’s looking to turn that effort into results.

The post Bears’ TJ Edwards gets brutally honest on return from gruesome injury appeared first on ChiCitySports.