WARE, United Kingdom – Although the Bears are nearly 4,000 miles from home, they've been mostly able to stick with their regular game-week routine.

A key reason is that team is staying at a hotel on the outskirts of London that's adjacent to practice fields, allowing players and coaches to walk to workouts as they prepare for Sunday's game against the Jaguars at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium.

"This is a great facility," said coach Matt Eberflus. "People are super nice, really accommodating to all of our needs that we have and have done a really nice job here."

It's much more convenient than it was when the Bears last played in London in 2019 and spent 45 minutes on buses each way to practice. There are also fewer distractions; the hotel is located more than an hour's drive from central London.

When Eberflus was Cowboys linebackers coach and Dallas played a game in London in 2014, players and coaches stayed downtown with family members.

"There was more stuff going on just because of the city and the families being in the hotel with you," Eberflus said. "This is more isolated, and I think it's going to be good for our preparation. That's the biggest difference but [I] had a good time the last time we came out. This has been good. Get a bunch of good time with the players and the other coaches and the meeting times have been good, too."

The Bears departed Chicago Monday night and arrived in London the next morning. Players had their customary day off Tuesday, then participated in a walk-through Wednesday. Full practices are scheduled for Thursday and Friday.

Brisker ruled out

Bears general manager Ryan Poles confirmed Wednesday that safety Jaquan Brisker won't play against the Jaguars after sustaining a concussion in last Sunday's win over the Rams. Brisker did not travel with the team to London.

"He had reports of concussion symptoms on Monday," Poles said. "Reported that to [head athletic trainer] Andre [Tucker], which I give him a lot of credit for because we all know how competitive he is, and from a player's perspective, that's difficult because you want to have an opportunity to go play."

Brisker sustained the injury with a big hit on Panthers tight end Tommy Tremble that resulted in a fumble that was recovered by defensive tackle Gervon Dexter Sr. Tremble also suffered a concussion on the play.

"I thought [Brisker] did a really good job actually of getting his head out of it and using his shoulder, but unfortunately the offensive player hit the side of his helmet," Poles said. "All of the mechanisms that are put in place by the league and team were there—spot checks, all of that—but he was cleared all the way through and the symptoms popped up Monday. So we want to respect that and make sure that he's healthy as we move forward, so that's why he stayed behind."

Hicks the next man up

Eberflus revealed that Brisker will be replaced by Elijah Hicks, a 2022 seventh-round pick who has played in 37 games with eight starts in three seasons, registering 68 tackles, one pass breakup, one forced fumble and one fumble recovery.

"Elijah has done a really good job for us in the past," Eberflus said. "He's been in our system, so we trust him, know him. He knows the system well. He's excited about the opportunity."

Welcome back

Defensive end Jacob Martin, who has been on injured reserve since Aug. 27, returned to practice Wednesday, opening a 21-day window to reinstate him on the active roster.

Martin signed with the Bears in March. He has appeared in 91 NFL games with 15 starts over six seasons with the Seahawks (2018), Texans (2019-21), Broncos (2022), Jets (2022) and Colts (2023), compiling 85 tackles, 16 tackles-for-loss, 18.0 sacks, seven forced fumbles, three fumble recoveries and four pass breakups.

Roster moves

The Bears on Wednesday signed tight end Tommy Sweeney to the practice squad. Sweeney was with the team earlier this year from May 13-Aug. 24.

He was selected by the Bills in the seventh round of the 2019 draft out of Boston College and played in 24 games with four starts for Buffalo in 2019 and 2021-22, catching 18 passes for 165 yards and one touchdown. Sweeney signed with the Giants in 2023 but was placed on the reserve/non-football injury list after collapsing during a training camp practice due to a medical event.

Sweeney takes the practice squad spot of tight end Teagan Quitoriano, who was signed to the Texans' active roster.