The Bears listed four players on their injury report Wednesday in advance of Sunday's season opener against the Packers.
Safeties Jaquan Brisker (groin) and Eddie Jackson (ankle) and defensive end DeMarcus Walker (calf) were limited in practice, while reserve linebacker Dylan Cole (hamstring) was the only Bears player who did not participate.
The Bears are hoping that Brisker, who missed all three preseason games, will be able to start versus Green Bay.
Asked what he hopes to see from the second-year pro this week in practice, coach Matt Eberflus said: "I want to see the speed that he's able to play at … just excited to see that and his communication with Eddie and Kyler [Gordon] and the rest of the defense. That's been good, so just excited to see him going full speed."
Guard/center Lucas Patrick also missed the entire preseason but practiced without restrictions Wednesday. After signing with the Bears last year following five seasons with the Packers, Patrick missed the final 10 games due to a toe injury.
"We just hope he stays healthy and performs well," Eberflus said. "I know it's been frustrating for him. I know he's wanted to be on the field. I know he's worked extremely hard this offseason to change his body. We were certainly excited about that, and then he got injured during training camp. I know there's a little frustration for him, but he's just putting his best foot forward for this week and we expect him to execute."
Backup plan: Eberflus revealed that the Bears are "leaning" toward having veteran Nathan Peterman serve as their No. 2 quarterback ahead of undrafted rookie Tyson Bagent Sunday.
"That's what we're looking at right now," Eberflus said. "We haven't made a final decision, but that's where we're leaning to now for this first game. But we'll see where it goes during the course of the week, and we certainly reserve the right to make any adjustments as we need to going forward."
Even if Peterman is the backup Sunday, that doesn't mean that Bagent won't have the opportunity to win the No. 2 job at some point this season.
"I think that's to be said for the whole football team," Eberflus said. "I think we're always looking at guys developing and improving during the course of the year, and that person could jump into a No. 2 role or could stay where he is. I think that's with everybody for us."
Best rivalry: Eberflus is straddling a fine line this week of making players aware of the magnitude of the Bears-Packers rivalry while also reminding them that Sunday's game is one of 17 on their schedule.
"You have to state what it is," he said. "I mean, it's a heck of a rivalry. It's the best rivalry in football. So you've got to state that. That's a fact. The other thing is this is one game. This is the only game we can control. And we control one play at a time, this preparation for this week, playing against this opponent, Week 1.
"So you've got to micro it down for them too. That's how you win the game, right? You do it one play at a time and you do it all the way through the game."
Take the North: General manager Ryan Poles' proclamation at his introductory press conference a year and a half ago to "take the North and never give it back" begins with winning division games like Sunday's opener at Soldier Field.
"That's the No. 1 goal is to win the division and then win the conference and then go to the Super Bowl and have a chance to win that," Eberflus said. "And we talk about that early on in the spring. But we know that division games are more important. They have a little more weight to them. And we're excited about this one."
