The Bears had players on both sides of the line of scrimmage leave practice early on Thursday.
Braxton Jones, Montez Sweat left Bears practice early
Bears players Braxton Jones and Montez Sweat left practice early
Scoring Zone's Take
Two Bears you'd typically slot into different draft tiers — Braxton Jones as offensive line depth with no standalone fantasy value, and Montez Sweat as a legitimate DL1/edge-rush option in IDP or best-ball formats — both left practice early, and that's the entirety of what's confirmed right now. No injury designation, severity, or expected absence timeline has been reported, so treat this as a yellow flag rather than a red one heading into draft season.
For Sweat, this is the name that actually moves your board. He's coming off a productive role as Chicago's top pass rusher, and any recurring absence during camp is worth tracking closely since edge defenders who miss reps can slip in ADP. Right now there's nothing indicating a long-term issue, so don't downgrade him in IDP drafts yet — just flag him for a practice-report check before you lock in his draft slot, and have a contingency plan if further reports surface before your draft.
Jones carries no fantasy relevance on his own, but his health matters insofar as it affects Bears offensive line stability, which indirectly touches the outlook for skill players like the quarterback and lead back if their protection is in flux. That's a secondary, speculative consideration at this stage.
Confidence here is low-to-moderate — the two sources agree on the basic fact (both players left early) but give no clarity on cause or severity. Don't bench or fade Sweat in drafts based on this alone; just monitor beat reports over the next few days before finalizing your rankings.